The latest jewel of the City Football Group has been a key figure in the Catalan club's unlikely rise to the summit of the Spanish top flight

Girona really aren't supposed to be where they are. The Catalan club play in Montilivi, capacity 11,810. Most people in the area are die-hard Barcelona fans, more likely to travel the 65 miles along the coast to Camp Nou than cram into one of La Liga's smallest grounds.

But this year, Montilivi is a destination. At the end of matchday seven of the Spanish season, Girona were top of the table, with six wins and one draw. They were a point above Real Madrid and two above Barcelona. This has all happened despite a gutting of their squad, with top-scorer Taty Castellanos and midfield enforcer Oriol Romeu both departing the club.

But their production — Argentine Castellanos', in particular — has been made up for by another South American: Savinho, a Brazilian-born, City Football Group (CFG) owned 19-year-old has lit up the Spanish top flight thus far, scoring two, assisting four, and orchestrating one of football's biggest surprises in the early stages of the season. He has drawn interest from top clubs around Europe, and doesn't figure to be in Girona for much longer.

But who is the Brazilian attacking midfielder, who looks primed to be the latest star in the CFG network? And how is he making such a big impact for a team that has surpassed everyone's expectations?

Pedro Souza / AtléticoWhere it all began

Like many young Brazilian talents, Savinho started his career with his local club. Born on a cow farm outside Sao Mateus, a large town not far from some of the major tourist destinations of south-eastern Brazil, the winger established himself in regional youth setups. He wasn't on the radar of many academies as a youngster, but after starring in a tournament that included teams from Atletico Mineiro and Cruizero, Serie A setups started to take notice.

His now-agent, Juliano Rodrigues, recommended Savinho, then 11, to the academy director at Mineiro. But getting him there wasn't simple. Atletico are based in Minas Gerias, some 250 miles from his hometown. Eventually he moved there with his mother.

Once settled in, Savinho rose through the ranks quickly. He was playing with the Under-13s as an 11-year-old, and broke into the Brazilian national team setup in his mid-teens — playing a role for the Under-15 side that won the Copa America in 2019.

AdvertisementPedro Souza/Atletico-MGThe big break

Savinho first received a call up to Atletico's first team in 2020, penning a three-year contract — the maximum length of someone in his age group. He made his full debut in September 2020, but appeared sparingly for the next two years. His first goal came in May 2022, the third in a 3-1 Copa Libertadores win over Ecuadorian side Independiente del Valle.

By then, though, attention had come from elsewhere. The City Football Group, the organisation spearheaded by Manchester City, has roots deep in Brazilian football. And they wanted Savinho. They paid Atletico €6.5 million (£5.5m/$7.4m) for his services, and handed the club 12.5% of any future sale of the winger.

Other clubs were after him at the time, including Arsenal, who had found success in a winger of a similar profile in Gabriel Martinelli. However, CFG were willing to pay up. He was officially signed by then-Ligue 2 club Troyes, who swiftly loaned him to PSV. He was a bit part player for the Eredivisie runners up last season, making nine league appearances, struggling to break into the side behind the highly-rated Johan Bakayoko.

Getty ImagesHow it's going

But another loan move — this time to Girona — changed things. The middling La Liga side were in need of attacking help after losing top scorer Castellanos. And Savinho was their answer.

Manager Michel Sanchez has handed Savinho a massive role in the side early on, deploying the 18-year-old on the left of an ambitious 4-3-3 formation. It seemed to be an odd fit for a player who had spent most of his youth playing on the right and cutting onto his left — a trait that often earned the teenager comparisons to Dutch legend Arjen Robben.

But it has worked out so far, with Savinho having a hand in six of Girona's 18 goals. Michel has accordingly been full of praise:

"We saw [Savinho] at the World Cup because we followed him and we had the feeling that he could help us," he told . "I know they are big words, but since the emergence of Vinicius I don’t think I have seen a one-on-one talent as destabilising as him.”

GettyBiggest strengths

Michel may be ambitious in his comparison, but he rather broadly has a point. Savinho is a devastating one-on-one dribbler, blessed with pace and the kind of quick feet that have come to be associated with some of the best Brazilian wingers over the years.

Still, there are some stylistic differences that set him apart. While the recent crop of Brazilian wingers — Raphinha, Antony, Vinicius Jr — have all functioned as inside forwards, Savinho loves to hug the touchline, creating as much space as possible to get at his man one-on-one. And, crucially, he can take on a defender in either direction.

But there is more to his game than just dribbling ability. His Atletico manager, Jorge Sampaoli, highlighted Savinho's playmaking and technicality in the final third, suggesting he was a creative player more in the mould of Real Madrid's Rodrygo — only better.