Manchester City: Tosin Adarabioyo’s contract is a step in the right direction

Tosin Adarabioyo finally penned his new contract, keeping him at the club until 2021. The news of the youth product resigning is a great sign for the academy players.

After much delay, it finally paid off. Tosin Adarabioyo, a Manchester City Academy graduate, officially signed a new four-year deal that will keep him at the club for a foreseeable future. While Adarabioyo’s talent is undeniable, it is the context of this deal that makes it so exciting.

For some time, the Mancunian was not happy with his position on the team sheet – and rightfully so. Despite being on the first-team roster for two years, he has yet to make a league appearance. As a 19-year old prospect who needs game time, this was a hard pill to swallow. As great as first team training may be, it will never replicate the in-game atmosphere. It was no surprise that there were numerous reports stating the young center back is leaving the club at the end of the season.

Six weeks ago, things started to take a turn. There were reports flying everywhere that the youngster actually agreed to a new deal. While both the club and the player denied the report, the hopeful feeling would not go away. The fear of losing one of the brightest kids in the academy ranks was beginning to spread away. So when Manchester City finally announced that he signed a new deal, it signaled change.

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Adarabioyo will not be treated like the rest of the hot prospects in many big Premier League clubs. The likes of Manchester City and Chelsea made a habit of loaning their young stars out to a various different clubs, never giving them a chance to shine. Even when the team needs such players (i.e. Pablo Maffeo), the board has a hard time trusting these young kids. With Adarabioyo, that will not be the case. The Englishman was ready to move on to find first team football. For someone who was already half-way out of the door to slam it shut and come back in, the deal had to be something special. There is no doubt that Adarabioyo will make the first-team impact this coming season. No way he would have signed a new contract if that was not the case.

Looking at the current crops of Manchester City, Adarabioyo will certainly be able to break in. Vincent Kompany is magnificent, but father time is unbeaten. John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi have proven that they can be unreliable. It is not as if Pep has multiple world-class defenders at his disposal. Even Aleksander Kolarov made some cameo appearance at the heart of the defense last season. There is a place for the 19-year old to claim.

This also signals that Manchester City will not bring in any new center-backs in. As mentioned before, it is likely Adarabioyo got some assurance about playing time. Now Pep can focus the transfer budget on other needs, primarily the fullback positions.

With the first team football now in sight, Tosin Adarabioyo will have a chance to play with Vincent Kompany and really grow and learn. We have already seen John Stones play with the Belgian and the kind of difference it makes for a younger player to share the field with him. Stones looked much more comfortable and reassured with the captain. There was much less confusion at the backline. He was able to show the world why he was to highly touted. Adarabioyo can only grow next to Kompany. He will have a chance to play with John Stones and form a partnership for years to come.

Speaking of Stones, he will have a chance to play with him and form a partnership for years to come. Those two growing together can become a cornerstone of English defense as well. With English talent becoming more and more valuable in the Premier League, having those two men the backline would be a dream come true.

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Above all, this goes beyond Adarabioyo. He has opened the door for the youth of City to take control. Even though Pep is somewhat being forced to hand him playing time, Adarabioyo can make a statement for the entire academy system. If he performs like the star he can be, many more youngsters will be given a chance to spread their wings, fail, learn and grow to be stars that they can be. Sure, Aaron Mooy and Enes Unal showed us there are different ways to develop. But there is something so right about Mancunian making his name in Manchester.