Man City lead race to sign £25k-a-week star who’s “very keen” to join Pep

Manchester City are now leading the race for a “world-class” player, who is very keen on sealing a move to the Etihad Stadium this summer, according to a report.

Guardiola keen on new goalkeeper amid Ederson concerns

Man City crashed out of the Club World Cup at the round of 16 stage, which left Pep Guardiola dissatisfied, and the manager is reportedly growing particularly tired of Ederson’s performances, with the Brazilian failing to reach his usual lofty heights.

Consequently, Guardiola is now looking to bring in a new goalkeeper this summer, with it recently being revealed the Blues are ready to submit a £51m bid for FC Porto’s Diogo Costa, who has been identified as one of their top targets.

However, Costa is not the only option on the shortlist, as James Trafford is also of interest, and contact has been made over a deal for the Burnley shot-stopper, with City looking to hijack their Premier League rivals, Newcastle United.

Newcastle have been in the driving seat in the race for Trafford’s signature for quite some time, and a report last week suggested the Magpies were closing in on a deal, but it now looks like he could re-join the Blues.

According to a report from Football Insider, the Etihad Stadium is the goalkeeper’s most likely destination this summer, indicating Man City are now leading the race, with Newcastle now at real risk of missing out on a deal entirely.

City have a £40m buy-back clause for their former player, although they are looking to negotiate a fee below that figure, given that £40m would be a large fee to shell out for a goalkeeper yet to prove himself at the very highest level.

Crucially, the Burnley star is “very keen” on a return to the Etihad Stadium, which means it could be easy to negotiate personal terms if the Blues are able to agree a suitable fee with the Clarets.

“World-class” Trafford could be ideal Ederson heir

The 22-year-old, on £25,000-a-week, is clearly now ready to test himself at the top level, given that he performed remarkably well for Burnley in the Championship last season, shipping just 16 goals in 45 appearances and keeping 29 clean sheets.

The former City man clearly has plenty of self-belief too, having described himself as “world-class” last season, and the Englishman’s performances for the Clarets over the past year suggest he could certainly be at that level.

Clearly, Trafford could be an ideal long-term replacement for Ederson, but he will have big shoes to fill, given that the Brazilian has been a fantatsic servant to City, winning six Premier League titles during his time at the Etihad Stadium.