It’s one of the most interesting narratives from a summer transfer window that was filled with them. Man City re-signed James Trafford from Burnley following a stellar season in the Championship, only to seemingly replace him a few weeks later with Gianluigi Donnarumma.
They’re two very different goalkeepers. Trafford came through at City, trained from a young age to play their way, while Donnarumma is one of the planet’s best shot stoppers, but it notoriously not great with his feet.
So, who should be Pep Guardiola’s first-choice goalkeeper this season?
The case for James Trafford
Trafford was a key part of a Burnley defence that conceded just 16 goals in 46 Championship games. He played 45, even going on a remarkable run of not conceding for 12 straight games. He even had co-owner and former NFL star JJ Watt sweating.
The two made a bet that if Trafford didn’t concede another goal, Watt would have to come out of retirement. Messages were exchanged on December 28th; he didn’t let anything past him until March 4th.
In the Championship, his 16 goals conceded wasn’t the only impressive stat. Trafford had a save percentage of 84.5% and a goal prevented total of +12.9, which is quite impressive considering he faced an xGOT 28.9. For those that don’t know, xGOT measures the probability of that shot resulting in a goal.
In terms of distribution, he ended the Championship with a 70.3% pass accuracy rate and 209 accurate long balls. He often played short when in open play but had no issues hoofing it up the pitch from set pieces. These stats show a ‘keeper that has been asked to mix his distribution up rather than simply play a single way.
His return to City made a lot of sense, especially with Ederson, their former number one, on the move. He still has a lot to learn, however, he often goes to punch balls you’d want him to catch, and given the increase in quality of opposition, mistakes were inevitable.
That’s exactly what happened against Spurs. He wasn’t to blame for their first, City’s defence was nowhere to be seen, and he did manage to get a hand to Brennan Johnson’s shot, the second one though, that was on him.
The Spurs players were man marking the City defenders who were attempting to play it out from the back. Trafford opts to try and pass it to Nico Gonzalez, only for Pape Sarr to snatch it off his toe. Richarlison then laid it off to Joao Palhinha, who smashed it into the back of the net.
It’s impossible to say whether that was the moment that City decided to move for Donnarumma, but if it hadn’t happened, perhaps Trafford would be their undisputed number one. He was excellent in their next game against Brighton after all.
The case for Gianluigi Donnarumma
For those FIFA and Football Manager players among us, this move makes perfect sense. Why wouldn’t a club want to sign the man who played such a pivotal role in winning PSG their first ever Champions League title?
It’s a fair question. Donnarumma was a standout for PSG on the continent, particularly against English opposition as they beat Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Arsenal on their way to the big-eared trophy.
He saved two penalties against Arne Slot’s side, who, at the time, were touted as favourites to win the whole thing. Incredible reflex saves from Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli in the game at the Emirates rightfully earned him universal praise from pundits and fans alike.
But is he a Pep Guardiola goalkeeper? It’s hard to tell. The stats would suggest he’s not great at playing out from that back, a tactic that has defined Guardiola’s Man City tenure since he decided to swap Joe hart for Claudio Bravo.
Donnarumma ended last season with an 84.5% pass accuracy rate in PSG Ligue 1 winning campaign and only 62 of his long balls met their intended target. In comparison, City’s former number one Ederson had an 86.3% pass accuracy rate and clocked an impressive 139 accurate long balls in the league despite playing just two more games (26).
PSG manager Luis Enrique has spoken several times about wanting a different kind of profile between the sticks, and after Donnarumma kept asking for more money during the summer, he was no longer deemed untouchable, with Lucas Chevalier coming into replace him.
Over the years, Guardiola has shown a propensity to adapt, despite what some might think. As The Athletic’s James Horncastle pointed, people were quick to point out that Erling Haaland didn’t suit his style. He had the big Norwegian robot have done pretty well since then.
Other than his distribution, the other glaring weakness in his game is collecting high balls. Donnarumma is a big guy, standing at 6’5” and weighing around 89kg, but he lacks physical presence during corners and other set pieces. With Premier League sides now starting to recognise just how important they are from an attacking standpoint, he will need to improve.
Verdict
City are incredibly lucky to have two goalkeepers of such a high quality fighting it out for the number one spot. Trafford may wear the number, but the club won’t be paying Donnarumma a reported £13 million per-year to sit on the bench. Expect the Italian to be the main man.