To understand the enormous potential of the City Football Group, and therefore of the football clubs that work and function well under multiple ownership, it might be worth delving into the story of the Brazilian Dell, a 17-year-old forward who plays for Bahia (one of the clubs owned by CFG). And, in fact, he already has everything needed to be considered the new Haaland. For now, it’s a matter of suggestion and nicknames: Wenderson Wanderley Santos de Melo – this is the boy’s full name – has been compared to the Norwegian striker since his debut in the youth teams of Bahia and the Brazilian National Team, to the point that his fans and insiders call him “Haaland de Sertão” (Sertão is the region where Dell was born, in Northeast Brazil).
Of course, there are some anthropometric differences between the two (the young Brazilian is not even 180 centimeters tall) and obviously also technical ones, but the fact remains that Dell is an extremely prolific striker, having scored an unspecified number of goals in the youth competitions he has participated in. However, as mentioned, the fact that he is owned by Bahia, the Brazilian team of the City Football Group, contributes to fueling the comparison. Especially now that he has started to gain recognition in the first team.
In the CFG’s mind, of course, there is a gradual growth, step by step. For the moment, therefore, the boy will continue to play for Bahia coached by Rogério Ceni. But his future already includes a transfer to Europe. And this is where all the enormous opportunities guaranteed to those orbiting within the Emirati multiple ownership manifest: for Dell and for the City Football Group, there is no shortage of options; in fact, the player could be tested in clubs of any level, from Lommel (Belgian second division) to Troyes (just returned to Ligue 1), or even to Palermo (Italian Serie B) and Girona (Spanish Liga). According to what reports Marca, the most concrete possibilities are to end up in Belgium, France, or at most in Spain, but obviously, that’s not the point: the point is that Dell already has his fate sealed; he will certainly be evaluated and maximized within the ecosystem of the City-branded conglomerate. Which, let’s remember, also includes New York City FC in America, Melbourne City in Australia, Yokohama Marinos in Japan, Montevideo City Torque in Uruguay, and Shenzen Xin Pengcheng in China, in addition to Manchester City and the other clubs already mentioned.
It is clear that the ideal outcome for CFG would be to develop Dell into the new Haaland for real, meaning that he could eventually replace the Norwegian striker of Manchester City with a player acquired at no cost. However, before reaching the flagship team, there will be many intermediate steps. Throughout this journey, which would obviously always occur under the group’s control, the young Brazilian could be monitored and perhaps purchased by any other team, and at that point, CFG would generate a net profit. Both scenarios have materialized with Savinho and Taty Castellanos: the Brazilian is the first talent who, starting from a team within the multiple ownership, has reached the squad coached by Guardiola; the Argentine former Lazio player, on the other hand, was taken from Torque City from the youth sector of Universidad de Chile, then passed through New York City and finally Girona, before generating a profit of 15 million euros at the time of his transfer to Lazio. At the moment, Dell seems to have the potential to aspire to something even bigger, but only time will tell if he can maintain the brilliant promises he is making right now. What is certain, however things go, is that the deal will be made by the City Football Group.