Why Angus Gunn Is the Player Manchester City Should Loan out in January

The loan system is notoriously problematic, but for a club like Manchester City, with a batch of talented young players on their books in need of progression, it’s a necessary evil.

Speaking exclusively to Bleacher Report last year, Patrick Vieira, City’s former Elite Development Squad (EDS) manager now in charge of New York City FC, made the distinction between academy and “man” football. Vieira feels the technical side of the game can be taught at youth level but says it’s no substitute for the physical development needed to excel in a senior side.

“When you play under 21s the gap is massive to the first team,” Vieira said. “We played against Porto's B team, and they play man football every week—this is how you get close to the first team.

“For English football, we need the B teams so young players can play man football.

“What we want is to keep our players in our club and play with our philosophy. We don't want to send them on loan—we want to keep them, and the best way to keep them is to give them the game programme they need which is man football.”

A club can develop a young player’s understanding of the game, encouraging a certain style and cultivating an appreciation of various formations, but if the club puts the player into the first team before they’ve been exposed to senior football at any level, they will struggle to cope.

It’s a conundrum for a club like City. They have a handful of players who look technically proficient and talented enough to make a push for Manuel Pellegrini’s squad, but they aren’t physically ready to be given a chance. The answer is a loan move to a side as high up the football pyramid as possible. 

Loans can be precarious, though. They’re low-risk for the club taking the player. There’s little cost, and it isn’t a long-term scenario, so dropping them is an easier decision than it would be for a senior player in receipt of a significant wage. There have been plenty of occasions young players have moved on loan, with expectations high, only to end up playing so few games it would have been better for them to remain at their parent club. 

Look at John Guidetti’s temporary switch to Stoke City in 2014. Pellegrini sent him to the Britannia Stadium to play games in order to regain some fitness, confidence and form. Mark Hughes, though, had other ideas. Guidetti played just six times, failing to score. It was a move that benefitted no one. 

There are a growing number of players at City who need a loan move in order to continue their development, those who have outgrown the under-21 side but aren't quite ready to compete for a place in Pellegrini's side. 

Angus Gunn perhaps tops the list. Gunn is a 19-year-old goalkeeper whom City feel has a big future. His performances for the EDS have been remarkable—underlined by his maturity and excellence. For one so young, he's already seen as having the kind of character needed to make a big name for himself at senior level. 

He's the son of former Norwich City 'keeper Bryan Gunn.

His focus on becoming a Premier League and England regular is clear. He left Norwich in 2011, the club he joined as a young child and the one his father had played for between 1986–1998, becoming a legend in the process. It was a difficult decision, but it was one Gunn knew he had to make.

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"It was difficult because I was there as a young boy," Gunn told Bleacher Report in 2014. "My dad played for them, and I still love the club because that's the club I grew up supporting, but sometimes you have to be selfish and think about yourself."

At City, he's flourished. Parachuted in the City under-21 team ahead of schedule, he's been called up to the England under-21 side, and he has his eyes firmly set on usurping Joe Hart at club and international level. 

"I'd like to play for Man City and also England," he said. "Obviously, Joe Hart is No. 1 at the moment; he's a great goalkeeper, and he's a great person to look up to for me.

"But no one can carry on forever, so I'll hope to be there when Joe's not there anymore, and, hopefully, I can be England and Man City's No. 1 goalkeeper." 

For the remainder of the season, though, he's unlikely to feature for City's first team. Hart's form is immaculate and worthy of high praise. Willy Caballero is a Pellegrini favourite from their time together at Malaga and has been chosen as City's domestic cup 'keeper. When Hart has been injured this season, elder statesman Richard Wright has been preferred to Gunn on the bench as backup to Caballero. 

A switch would be good for Gunn. It would remove from his comfort zone, get him playing in front of bigger crowds and fast-track his physical development. 

If he gets the right move and plays regularly, he could come back and find himself in a position to supplement the first-team squad. With Vieira likely to have his pick of City youngsters over in New York, could a switch to the MLS be on the cards? 

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Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2015/16 season. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @RobPollard_.