Echeverri putting ´very bad´ Leverkusen loan behind him at Girona

Manchester City loanee Claudio Echeverri is hoping his loan spell at Girona helps him rediscover the form that led to the Premier League club signing him in the first place.

Echeverri joined Man City from River Plate in 2024, but remained with the Argentine giants for another year on loan.

The attacker made his City debut in May 2025, coming on as a substitute in their FA Cup final loss to Crystal Palace.

He subsequently joined Bayer Leverkusen on loan for this season, but failed to make an impression in Germany, making just three starts and playing for only 270 minutes across 11 appearances.

Echeverri’s loan at Leverkusen was cut short, and he instead joined Girona, who are owned by City Football Group, in January.

While he is yet to start for Girona, he has played four times, and he came off the bench to help them beat Barcelona 2-1 on Monday, creating a joint-team-high two chances despite only playing the final stages.

“I’m here, happy, trying to get back to the version that saw me being sold to City,” Echeverri told ESPN.

“We are very happy with the victory. I’m very happy. I had difficult months in Germany. I had a very bad time.

1 – Barcelona have lost a match in which they attempted at least 27 shots, including a penalty kick, for only the second time since the 2004/05 LaLiga season, following their defeat against Sevilla at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán in Oct 2015 (28 shots, 2-1 final). Obstacle pic.twitter.com/BRhstlYuy0

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) February 16, 2026

“For me, Barcelona is the best team in the world. We know the quality players that Barcelona have.

“The team played well, we ran a lot and that’s why we got the win. Hopefully, this will be the push we need to keep going forward.

“I tried to help my team. I’m glad I could help the team score.”

There was some controversy to Girona’s winner, with Barca players accusing Echeverri of fouling Jules Kounde in the build-up to Fran Beltran’s 86th-minute strike.

After a VAR check, though, the goal was given.

Echeverri told El Chiringuito TV: “Yes, I stepped on his foot, but I was running fast and it was accidental.

“I would have understood [if a foul had been called]. But luckily we got the victory.”