Opinion: if Lavia dreams with Manchester City... he can stay better

FRIDAY, 19 JUNE 2020, 10:24 - Macuz
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OPINIONS Rumors abound that Roméo Lavia change Anderlecht for Manchester City. The best talent celebrated his sixtheenth birthday in January.

Lavia and Mario Stroeykens are the two golden rooster of the purple and white generation of 2004. Anderlecht will continue to bet heavily on his own youth and the loss of Lavia would therefore be a severe blow.

Financial choice?

Of course, we only know a fraction of Lavia's history. We don't know what kind of contract Anderlecht has offered to him, how much citizens wants to throw on the table and what role his entourages really plays.

It is too easy blame to someone behind a keyboard for someone you don't know for leavin Anderlecht. Because you can earn a multiple elswhere o for some else reason.

Not surprisingly, a sixteen-year old boy dreams with a club like Manchester City. And the fact that he hasn't signed up anywhere five monthe after his sixteenth birthday, indicates that it does not come out overnight.

Sports surface

But on a sporting level, nobody can blame us for frowning behind a keyboard when choosing City. As long as nothing is draw, we will continue talking in two words.

Phil Foden seems to be the exception confirm the rule, that it is terribly dificult to move from youth academy to core A at Manchester blue club.

Not that a passage at the Manchester City Youth Academy is necessary detrimental to the continuationof his career. For example, at the age of fifteen, Jadon Sancho traded the youth academy for Man City. He left again two years later to fully explode at Borussia Dortmund.

But we are no fans of Citizens annual mercenary army. And in hindsight, we don't suspect the players in cueston. The cynical mathematician in ourselves is currently thinking: 'Drawing in City = a year in youth + one year on loan Lommel, NAC Breda and English Second Division'.

Vincent Kompany

But jus fair, as central defender or technically savvy defensive midfielder who eventually dreams of playing chances at Manchester City, Can you sit somewhere better than under wings of Vincent Kompany in Anderlecht?

Philippe Sandler answered that question the last sumer, it is a shame he didn't take a lot action due to injuries.

Of course, we have purple and white glasses. But apart form that: if Lavia dreams of succeeding with Manchester City or another top European club, he showld now sing with Anderlecht.
We could talk about the best talents who left Anderlecht too early and failed later, but that would be too easy.

Each player is different and fortunately, soccer is not an exact science. But how can we see better where Lavia could be in two years than going back two years in time?

2001 - 2002 national team

In May 2018, Marc Coucke anounced that eleven of U17 players had signed their first professional contract in Brussels.
25 months later, that "team" from 2001 and 2002 is fine. Yari Verschaeren (44 games for Anderlecht's main team) already scored for the Red Devils.
Roberto Martinez made it clear that he also closely watches to Jeremy Doku (thirty games).

Antoine Colassin is 'only' in four appearances, but has already scored three times. Against Club Brugge, AA Gent and the only goal of the match against Mouscron. 2020 - 2021 may well his season.

Killian Sardella (twenty games) recently extended his contract until 2025, and Anouar Ait El Hadj and Lucas Lissens also have made the Purple & White core team pick multiple times.

The other five children are Mathis Suray, Halim Timassi, Loïc Masscho, Chris Kalulika and Antonio Zacarias. Ther are all eighteen years old.

At the conscious press conference, then the sport manager, Luc Devroe said the eleven's first goal was 'to take the stage with the first team in eighteen months'. In other words, last winter's intership. Although they obviusly will not reach eleven in Anderlecht, many children are already much further away than expected.

Even more talent...

Marco Kana was too young in May 2018 to sing a professional contract and was therefore he was not among the original eleven. He would eventually lay his first scratch a year later, extended his contract on Wednesday until 2023 and already played for Anderlecht seventeen times.

You would already count twenty four years old Albert Sambi Lokonga (41 games) among the older players on Franky Vercauteren's team. It was written in the stars that Lavia would replace Paul-José Mpoku's brother in the 2021-2022 season. Hopefully, astrologers are right and this transfer soap stops after crazy plot twist with a signature in Brussels.

Two year ago, Doku's contract was ready at Anfiel. Even in the newspapers, the ultra-fast winger was already knows as a Liverpool player. But in the end he stayed with Anderlecht.

Let us conclude with a quote from Marc Coucke at the press conference in question two year ago.

"How can we convince these talents? We can complain about the situation or try to make the best of it. That is what we did. The past shows that promising young peopel who stay with Anderlecht the longest often build the most succesful career".

Amen. Hopefully Lavia will also make the right decision in the end.