After Manchester City comfortably beat Wolves 4-0 on Saturday, the early signs suggest that they could be in the Premier League title race until the very end unlike last season.
Considering the likes of Tijjani Reijnders, James Trafford and Rayan Cherki in particular looked a class apart against Vitor Pereira’s side, the prospect of Pep Guardiola adding more fresh faces to his squad should frighten their title rivals.
Manchester City could sign Rodrygo this summer, who has the potential to further elevate an attack that already boasts of top-quality names like Erling Haaland, Cherki, Phil Foden, Oscar Bobb, Omar Marmoush and Jeremy Doku.
Gianluigi Donnarumma has caught Manchester City’s eye as well and the prospect of him joining the Sky Blues alongside the Real Madrid winger suggests Pep Guardiola is desperate to win the title this season.
Man City should walk away from Gianluigi Donnarumma deal after James Trafford’s heroics vs Wolves
While Donnarumma is one of the most in-form goalkeepers in the world, James Trafford showed against Wolves that he should be given a chance to remain City’s number one if Ederson leaves this summer.
Galatasaray have bid for Ederson and much like the Brazilian shotstopper, Trafford fits Manchester City’s system far more than the Italian number one for a multitude of reasons.
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First and foremost, in possession, Gianluigi Donnarumma is far from the best — often resorting to going long — and in doing so, he has made plenty of errors in the past, such as when he gifted the ball to Pedri in Barcelona’s 3-2 win against Paris Saint-Germain — who assisted Raphinha’s second goal.
Gianluigi Donnarumma of Italy during the UEFA EURO 2024 group stage match between Croatia and Italy at Football Stadium Leipzig on June 24, 2024
Photo by James Baylis – AMA/Getty Images
As Pep Guardiola praised Trafford’s exploits against Wolves, the Englishman showed why he is a much more suitable fit in City’s system — starting the move that resulted in Haaland’s second strike with an inch-perfect long kick that landed perfectly in Reijnders’ path. While shotstopping may be used as criteria to emphasise why Manchester City should sign Donnarumma, an area where he excelled last season, over the years, the 26-year-old has been extremely error-prone.
The most recent example emerged during PSG’s 1-0 defeat against Liverpool where the European Championship winner let Harvey Elliott’s scuffed shot bypass him; with a similar incident occurring when Kingsley Coman’s tame effort went under him in 2023.
Donnarumma, who Luis Enrique called “world-class” is far more established than the 22-year-old but the latter’s debut for City against Wolves displayed his shotstopping ability and command inside the box — with Ashley Cole tipping Trafford to reach the top due to being the modern-day goalkeeper.
Considering Manchester United are interested in signing Donnarumma, Pep Guardiola’s side should walk away from the deal and let their local rivals snap him up instead.
PSG expert revealed why Gianluigi Donnarumma would struggle in the Premier League
Renowned journalist and PSG fan Julien Laurens analysed Donnarumma’s game by claiming that he does not suit Pep Guardiola’s style at Manchester City as well as Premier League football in general.
“He is not a Pep type of keeper, unless City change the way they play.”
“But he is not good in the air (which you need to do well in the PL) and not great on the ball (which you need to play for Pep)!”
As a result, City should opt not to sign the four-time Ligue 1 winner, with the club often declining the chance to sign players even if that means Manchester United secure his services.