Why Marcos Lopes Should Be Promoted To The Manchester City First Team
- Chris Goodwin
- Jul 24, 2015
- 3 min read
Can he become a regular in the Manchester City first team next season?
More often than not when a player has time on their side and shows they have talent, they are dubbed as the next big thing which puts pressure on them to live up to that statement.
But it looks like City may have unearthed a real gem in the shape of Marcos Lopes or Rony as his friends call him.
Lopes was born in Brazil but moved to Portugal and played for Benfica’s youth academy before making the switch to Manchester City’s Elite Development Squad (EDS) in 2011, for around £790,000.
He first came to attention a year later when he was a surprise addition to the blues first team pre-season tour of Austria and the Far East where he played a part in six out of seven of City’s friendly fixtures.
Despite not being promoted to the first team squad once domestic fixtures began again in August, Lopes did not have long to wait before his debut, coming on as late substitute in a third round FA cup tie against Watford. Within two minutes of entering the fray, Lopes tapped in the third goal, in a three-nil win, becoming City’s youngest ever goalscorer in history at the age of seventeen years and nine days.
The following year saw the wide midfielder claim the Academy Player of the Year award after a public vote and was consequently handed the captaincy of the EDS for the 2013/14 season.
Lopes appeared to be improving all the time and was awarded a first team start in City’s 2014 Capital One Cup second leg against West Ham. A lot of young players given this opportunity might play safe passes and not try anything too risky. Lopes, however, grabbed the opportunity with both hands, assisting both Sergio Agüero and Álvaro Negredo in a 3-0 win (9-0 on aggregate) that also saw him win the Capital One Cup’s man of the match.
In July 2014, City sent Lopes on loan to Ligue 1 side Lille to further his development. Since overcoming a hamstring injury, that disrupted the first half of his campaign, he has become one of the first names on the team-sheet at Les Dogues. His driving runs, silky skills and eye for goal have seen him notch three goals and assist three so far.
With Lopes due back at Manchester City this summer, is it time he was officially promoted to the first team next season?
Everyone that has worked with him has spoken extremely highly of his ability. Patrick Vieira (Manager of the EDS) said, “Talent is not enough for the first-team. Your work-ethic, focus and determination has to be there. I believe Lopes has those things” whilst Lille’s youth chief Jean-Michel Vandamme was also full of compliments stating he’s possibly better than, current PFA player of the year, Eden Hazard was at his age. “Eden Hazard is a solo player, Ron conducts the play. He forces others to play better because he provides them with his services. Hazard is an attacker who can turn into number ten. Lopes is a number ten that can turn into an attacker. Ron Lopes is much more involved in the transition phases of play and he instinctively returns to defend”.
At the age of just 19, Rony has already captained the youth team, played and scored in his first time debut as well as impressing on loan in a tough French league.
Marcos Lopes has proven he can mix it with the likes of Sergio Agüero and David Silva, he’s also shown he has the correct attitude and commitment to succeed.
Manchester City is a club who have invested millions into their academy in the hope that they can one day have a starting eleven that consists of predominantly home grown players that they themselves have nurtured.
Promoting Marcos Lopes permanently to the first team would personify everything that City want to achieve and the direction they want the club to go in.
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