A sporting director of an EFL club has admitted he is very open to signing a Manchester City on loan again for next season.
City have become one of the top clubs in the world at producing young players, with investment into the academy having really borne fruit in recent years.
Clubs these days are queuing up to take players on loan from City, in the hope that they will be able to adapt smoothly to senior football.
There are so many talented youngsters on the books at the moment, and many of them are hoping to enjoy a similar rise to that of Phil Foden, Rico Lewis or Oscar Bobb.
But many will be sent out on loan to further their development, which is what happened with full-back Alex Robertson last summer.
Robertson joined Portsmouth in League One, and really impressed before suffering a serious hamstring injury which ended his season in January.
Despite that frustrating setback, Robertson is wanted back at Portsmouth for next season by their sporting director Rich Hughes…
Rich Hughes admits he ‘absolutely would’ want to sign Alex Robertson on loan from Manchester City again
Robertson – who City picked up after he left Manchester United at U15 level – got off to a great start for Portsmouth last season and had firmly established himself as a regular in their starting XI.
Robertson made 23 appearances in League One, tasting defeat just twice. He was a part of 11 clean sheets across those 23 games.
But disaster struck for Robertson in early January, when he suffered a torn hamstring in training after Pompey’s win Stevenage.
It ruled him out for the rest of the campaign and was a huge disappointment for the Australian youngster. But he clearly made a big enough impression when he was fit, because Portsmouth’s sporting director Rich Hughes is now very open to another loan move next season.
He said (via The News): “Alex is a really good player, we like him.
“He’s still recovering from his injury, so we have to let that pan out, but again if there was an opportunity for us to revisit those conversations, we absolutely would do.
“All four of our loan players could play in the Championship for us.”
A second loan to Portsmouth would be ideal for Robertson
It was a great shame that Robertson suffered the injury he did, when he did.
He was enjoying a really productive spell and then all of a sudden, his season was over and his development halted in its tracks.
But he must be very encouraged to hear the remarks of the sporting director Hughes, who was clearly left impressed by his performances in the first half of the season. Manager John Mousinho also said in December that Robertson had quickly become one of their best players.
It makes sense for City to send him back to Portsmouth.
They will be in the Championship next season after achieving promotion, and it is a great division for young players to develop.
He knows the players and the manager’s tactics, so City should definitely be open to facilitating a second loan move to Portsmouth for Robertson.