Frontrunner comes from the race for Newcastle and James Trafford’s Aston Villa
Manchester City’s goalkeeper, James Trafford, may continue to leave this summer, and his name has already been mentioned in the race between Newcastle United and Aston Villa.
Game time was very difficult to find at Trafford last season, after being replaced by Gianluigi Donnarumma in the same summer transfer window as he returned to the Etihad Stadium.
The 23-year-old has made just four appearances in the Premier League, despite failing to make the first leg of the EFL Cup campaign, keeping a clean sheet in a 2-0 final win over Arsenal.
Since then, the English coach has been heading to the World Cup, but it is not expected that he will get minutes again, with Jordan Pickford remaining Thomas Tuchel’s first choice in the group stage, keeping two clean sheets.
In fact, the former Burnley goalkeeper’s career is yet to really begin, despite being hailed as a “miracle” by Scott Parker, and he may need to move elsewhere this summer.
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Football FanCast verdict |
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Honesty |
Newcastle have already strengthened between the sticks this summer, signing Ewen Jaouen from Reims, but another option may be needed, given that Aaron Ramsdale has been out of favor for large parts of the last campaign, while Nick Pope has been attracting a lot of interest. On the other hand, Aston Villa may need to start thinking about signing a replacement for 33-year-old Emiliano Martinez. |
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Finance |
Man City are expected to want £35m – £40m for the stopper, who earns £50,000-a-week at the Etihad Stadium, making him one of the lowest-paid players in the first-team squad. Therefore, a big pay rise could tempt the England international who has played two games in a row. |
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Understanding |
Despite his poor performances last season, the City goalkeeper has shown signs that he could be a great goalkeeper in the future. In the 2024-25 season, he kept 29 clean sheets, the joint-highest total in the history of this division. |
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Impact |
Considering the reigning EFL Cup and FA Cup champions Donnarumma still has to appeal to, they could probably afford to cash in at Trafford. His arrival could spell the end for the Pope, considering Jaouen’s arrival means Eddie Howe is very busy in the goalkeeping department. |
Newcastle are leading the race to sign James Trafford
According to a report from Football Insider, Newcastle have entered the race for Trafford, and Howe is considered a “big fan”, but there is interest from rivals Aston Villa.
However, the Magpies will need to offer the 6-foot-6 goalkeeper assurances of game time if they are to get a deal over the line, following City’s disappointment.
Nick Pope will be watching what happens with James Trafford
Pope has been Howe’s first choice between the sticks for a long time, but he struggled last season, being benched in favor of Ramsdale towards the end of the campaign.
The 34-year-old has only one year left on his contract at St. James’ Park, which means that spending money this summer would be good, and Trafford could be the best replacement, given that he is still very young, and won the Championship Golden Glove with Burnley.
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