Manchester City news: Cityzens loanee impresses in LaLiga, set to return as 'ready-made reinforcement'

Girona's 2-1 victory over Barcelona knocked the Catalans off the top of La Liga for the first time this year, while also moving the team away from the relegation zone.

It is four wins, two draws and just one defeat for Girona in 2026, a statistic that is even more relevant for one player: Vitor Reis, the centre-back on loan from Manchester City, who is positioning himself as a "reinforcement" for the English side next season.

Signed by the Citizens in January 2025, Vitor Reis was loaned to Girona at the start of this season – part of the City Football Group's multi-club network – with the aim of gaining minutes and strengthening his case for a place in Pep Guardiola's defence.

The centre-back's performance in the triumph over Barcelona, as well as in the team's campaign this year in La Liga, proves he can already be considered a piece for Manchester City.

Reis dominant display against Barcelona

Against Barcelona, Vitor Reis recorded nine clearances, five duels won (on the ground and in the air) and three ball recoveries across the 90 minutes. In one of those plays, he launched a counter-attack single-handedly for Girona, only being stopped by a foul on the edge of the Blaugrana's box.

The winning goal also came from the defender's feet, as he intercepted a throw-in taken by Barcelona. The ball fell to Claudio Echeverri (also on loan from Manchester City) and resulted in Fran Beltran's goal. In La Liga, he also leads the statistic for aerial duels won in 2025-26.

"Imperial. A machine for winning duels in the box," highlighted Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo after Vitor Reis' performance.

At present, the plan is for Vitor Reis to return to Manchester City for the start of the 2026-27 season. Pep Guardiola's side are undergoing a squad restructure, and the young centre-back, just 20 years old, should get more opportunities in the first team.

Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones have all suffered injuries this season. As a result, the club brought in Marc Guehi and Max Alleyne to bolster the squad. Guardiola was asked about the possibility of bringing Vitor Reis back from his loan, but opted to keep the Brazilian at Girona to gain experience and prominence in Spain.

Reis loaned to gain experience before reinforcing Manchester City

Signed from Palmeiras for £33.9m (€40m), Vitor Reis had few opportunities in his first season in England. He spoke with Guardiola before sealing his move to Girona about what the club thought about his future and what the plans were for his career, as he revealed in an interview with Trivela in January.

"The first conversation about the matter was with Hugo Viana (City's director of football). He explained that this would be their idea, and I also gave my point of view. Shortly after, I had a phone meeting with Pep. He was very sincere and direct, and said that the best thing for me would be to go to Girona to get more playing time, gain experience and develop, especially at my age," he revealed.

"I felt a lot of truth in his words and accepted the proposal," the centre-back added. Although he is "100% focused" on Girona – as he himself describes it – Vitor Reis has not completely disconnected from Manchester City, nor have City from him. The centre-back follows the English side's matches, even from a distance, and had his loan to Spain "facilitated" by the club being part of the UAE network.

At Girona, Vitor Reis also had the objective of catching Carlo Ancelotti's eye for the Brazilian national team, in search of a World Cup spot. Although the World Cup squad is practically defined (18 names), the defensive department is still open to surprises in the next call-up in March for friendlies against France and Croatia.

In January, in addition to starting Girona's positive run that moved them away from the relegation zone, Vitor Reis was named La Liga's best under-23 player. He was used by head coach Michel in six of the seven matches, and scored in the draw with Getafe. He won the award ahead of Fermin Lopez (Barcelona), Gonzalo Garcia (Real Madrid), Marc Pubill (Atletico Madrid) and Alberto Moleiro (Villarreal).