Manchester City have already spent big in 2025, and are showing no signs of easing up.
In January, the Sky Blues splashed a reported £180m on five new signings, recruiting Abdukodir Khusanov, Juma Bah, Vitor Reis, Nico González and Omar Marmoush.
Nevertheless, after suffering an early Champions League exit and relinquishing their Premier League title, Pep Guardiola is set to oversee a major rebuild in the summer, with plenty more new signings set to arrive at the Etihad.
Manchester City targeting a new goalkeeper
As reported by Foot Mercato, Manchester City have been ‘given the initial green light’ in their attempt to sign Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa, who they claim is ‘keen on joining the club’.
The report notes that Costa has a €75m release clause, around £64m, reporting that Man City are willing to ‘break the bank’ to secure his services, following Ederson’s ‘disappointing season’.
Editor Zach Lowy certainly thinks this would be a good move, labelling Costa “one of the best goalkeepers in world football”, notably becoming the first goalkeeper to save three penalties in a European Championship shootout last summer, as Portugal dumped out Slovenia in Frankfurt.
Kevin Araújo Fernandes of Breaking the Lines asserts that Costa is ‘inarguably one of the brightest’ goalkeepers on the planet, underlining that he would be an excellent signing for Manchester City, but did they already sell an even bigger talent?
Manchester City already sold a bigger goalkeeping star
On Monday, following their 2-1 win over Sheffield United at Turf Moor, Burnley’s promotion back to the Premier League was confirmed.
Astonishingly, the Claret have conceded just 15 goals in 44 EFL Championship fixtures to date, hence why goalkeeper James Trafford has been earning plenty of plaudits.
Scott Parker’s side kept 11 successive clean sheets earlier this year, just the fifth club in English Football League history to achieve this, while enjoying 28 shutouts in total to date; the previous second-tier record was 25.
Meantime, the former record for fewest goals conceded in a Championship season is 30, while the Clarets’ require clean sheets from the final two fixtures, against QPR and Millwall, to match Chelsea’s all-time record of 15 goals conceded, achieved under José Mourinho in 2004/05, albeit in eight fewer matches.
Trafford has been a key figure in this defensive solidity, described as “world-class” by his manager Parker, with the table below underlining exactly why.
Clean sheets
28
1st
Clean sheet %
65.1%
1st
Goals conceded (min 11 apps)
15
1st
Goals conceded per 90
0.35
1st
Save %
84.5%
1st
% of penalties saved
100%
=1st
Post-shot xG – goals allowed
+10.9
3rd
As the table outlines, Trafford comes out on top for pretty much every statistic this season, with his two penalty saves especially remarkable considering they came just nine minutes apart, in the 88th and 97th minutes no less, denying Wilson Isidor both times, preserving a goalless draw against Sunderland in January.
Trafford joined Manchester City’s academy as a 13-year-old, before being sold to Burnley for a reported £19m two years ago, with Transfermarkt believing his current market value is now at its peak.
Thus, the 22-year-old is unquestionably a talented goalkeeper, so let’s analyse how he compares to Costa.
Appearances
43
41
Minutes
3,870
3,720
Goals conceded
15
44
Clean sheets
28
18
Save %
84.5%
68.3%
% of penalties saved
100%
33%
Post-shot xG – goals allowed
+10.9
-2.7
% of crosses stopped
5.9%
6.2%
Pass completion %
72.9%
78.5%
As the table outlines, Trafford has outperformed Costa this season, while plying his trade at only a slightly lower level; according to Global Football Rankings, the Championship is the 11th strongest league in the world, with the Primeira Liga ranked seventh.
So, regardless of who you believe to be the better goalkeeper, selling Trafford for £19m only to then sign Costa for in excess of three times more may be viewed as a mistake.
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