Herrera trains with Manchester City first-team and hopes to impress Pep Guardiola

After two years on loan at City Football Group club New York City FC, Venezuelan international midfielder Yangel Herrera is back in Manchester and training with the City first-team squad.

The 20-year-old joined Manchester City from Atlético Venezuela in his homeland on deadline day of the January 2017 transfer window and was quickly dispatched to NYCFC for two seasons.

Despite a number of injury problems, Herrera caught the eye with some excellent performances in the United States, and that led to interest from French club Lyon, who City fans are familiar with after their recent Champions League battles with Pep Guardiola’s side.

City rejected Lyon’s approaches, believing in Herrera’s potential, and he continued his development in New York, before his loan term expired recently.

Now back in Manchester, the young midfielder has been spotted training with the City first-team while his future is sorted. And according to El Nacional, Herrera is hoping to captivate Pep Guardiola enough to be considered for a first-team role.

If Herrera could obtain a work permit, City would not have to register him on the 25-man Premier League squad list, given that he is under the age of 21, meaning he could be another midfield option for Guardiola – if deemed good enough.

It is reported by El Nacional that after two years in New York, Herrera believes he is ready to play in a major European league. If there is no place for him in City’s squad, it is likely that he will be loaned out again, this time to a club in a prominent European league.