James Trafford (£5.0m) has returned to Manchester City in a move that will intrigue Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers – especially given his price.
After some outstanding performances for Burnley last season, he is, in City’s words, “one of the most coveted young goalkeepers operating in Europe”.
The £31m transfer fee is a British record for a goalkeeper. That sum eclipses the £30m Everton paid Sunderland for Jordan Pickford eight years ago.
But will he become City’s new number one and offer FPL managers a bargain route into the Cityzens’ backline? We investigate in our Moving Target article.
THE QUOTES
“He has all the attributes a top-class goalkeeper requires. We feel he is an ideal fit for this squad and will bring great quality to the goalkeeping department.
“We fully believe he will be really successful and a top goalkeeper for Manchester City and the national team.
“I also have no doubt that working with Pep and the technical staff here at City will only see James further develop his abilities.” – Hugo Viana
“I’m a hundred times better and I’ve improved in every aspect as a person and as a player.” – James Trafford, Manchester City
JAMES TRAFFORD: CLUB HISTORY
| Season | Team | League | Starts | Goals conceded | Saves | Save % | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-2022 | Accrington Stanley | League One | 11 | 26 | 30 | 53.6 | 2 |
| 2021-2022 | Bolton | League One | 22 | 20 | 62 | 75.3 | 7 |
| 2022-2023 | Bolton | League One | 45 | 34 | 126 | 78.8 | 22 |
| 2023-2024 | Burnley | Premier League | 28 | 62 | 106 | 65.7 | 2 |
| 2024-2025 | Burnley | Championship | 45 | 16 | 85 | 84.5 | 29 |
Above stats from Fbref
Trafford’s is a rare case of a player joining City for emotional as much as financial reasons. The 22-year-old spent eight years at the City academy, playing alongside Cole Palmer (£10.5m), Jadon Sancho (£6.0m), Liam Delap (£6.5m) and Morgan Rogers (£7.0m).
During his development, he had a loan spell at Accrington Stanley and two at Bolton Wanderers. All the while, he was developing the physical side of his game and growing into his 6ft 5in frame.
Many predicted a great future for the shot-stopper but he felt he had to leave City in 2023 to pursue first-team opportunities. The Cityzens, in recognition of his huge potential, inserted a buy-back clause when they sold him to Burnley for £14m.
That summer, Trafford helped England win the European Under-21 Championship. He did not concede a goal throughout the entire tournament and enhanced his reputation as a good penalty saver with a late spot-kick save in the final that preserved a 1-0 victory for Lee Carsley’s side. He’s gone on to save three of the eight penalties he’s faced in the league, in fact.
Trafford’s first season at Turf Moor was a baptism of fire. He kept only two clean sheets and conceded 62 goals in 28 appearances before getting the axe for the final nine matches of the campaign.
But the young ‘keeper gained valuable experience under Vincent Kompany, where he was encouraged to play out from the back. That’s in keeping with the Pep Guardiola philosophy under which he had been brought up at City.
Last season, under Scott Parker, proved to be Trafford’s coming of age. He played a major part in Burnley setting the Championship record for fewest goals conceded, shipping just 16 goals in 45 appearances.
He also kept a remarkable 29 clean sheets and at one stage, went 12 games without conceding once. That’s a record that, in England, has only ever been beaten by Manchester United. In one of those matches – a goalless draw with Sunderland – Trafford saved two penalties from Wilson Isidor (£5.5m). Unsurprisingly, the EFL named him in the division’s team of the year.
“He is a world-class goalkeeper” – Scott Parker, March 2025
“I know I am a world-class goalkeeper” – James Trafford, March 2025
2023/24 v 2024/25: CHALK AND CHEESE
The best context for viewing his improvement over the last two seasons is to compare how many goals Trafford was expected to concede against his “expected goals on target” (xGOT). This metric considers the quality of the on-target attempts a goalkeeper has faced, taking into account factors such as shot placement and the angle from which the shot is taken.
In the Premier League, Trafford’s save percentage was 63.1% and his goals prevented total -7.
Last season, he posted a save percentage of 84.5% and his goals prevented total swung to +12.9 — an extraordinary transformation. He conceded just 16 goals, when his xGOT was 28.9.
Trafford’s vast improvement
| Season | Save % | xGOT | Goals conceded | Goals prevented |
| 2023/24 | 63.1 | 55 | 62 | -7 |
| 2024/25 | 84.5 | 28.9 | 16 | 12.9 |
There is the feeling that Trafford has improved in many facets of his game. He is calmer in one-on-one situations, biding his time before making the decision to either advance on the attacker or adjust his positioning to narrow his target.
His hand-height positioning has also improved, enabling him to react quicker to make saves, while his distribution will have particularly impressed Guardiola. Burnley were a ball-dominant team last season, not the low-block outfit synonymous with Sean Dyche, and so Trafford contributed to building from the back with numerous quick, short passes to his team-mates. Perfect practice for how City like to play.
The elephant in the room is the fact that Trafford’s breakout season came in the Championship. And the gulf between the top flight and the second tier is enormous. We have to make allowances for the fact that City’s new signing was a big fish in a small pond. Will he sink or swim in the Premier League?
WILL TRAFFORD DISPLACE EDERSON?
Even if Trafford thinks he is a world-class goalkeeper, he is not there yet. Or at least, he hasn’t yet proved that he is at the highest level. So the £5.0m question is, will Guardiola give him that chance next season? Can the City manager take that risk when dropped points are so punitive in the modern-day Premier League title race?
There’s not much in the way of pre-season friendlies to give us a clearer idea of the way Pep is leaning. City play just once, against Palermo on August 9.
If Guardiola decides to trust his new signing, then he is an absolute must-have in FPL. City improved defensively towards the end of last season, keeping six clean sheets in the final nine matches. And they now have Rodri (£6.5m) back in the fold, strengthening their midfield spine further with Tijjani Reijnders (£5.5m).
Despite the Spaniard’s absence, City had the joint-fourth best defence in the division last season. They were only one clean sheet short of Liverpool’s league-best clean sheet tally, too:
A better-protected and much-improved Trafford in a title-challenging City side would be a premium keeper at a bargain price.
We simply can’t be sure he will start, though. We’ll leave the final word to the usually well-informed Simon Bajkowski, the Chief Manchester City Writer at the Manchester Evening News:
“Stefan Ortega is expected to leave Manchester City following James Trafford’s arrival at the club. The former City youngster rejoins with eyes on the No.1 spot.
“That position is still held by Ederson, who will go into a ninth season as Pep Guardiola’s preferred goalkeeper despite further speculation over the summer that he could leave again. Having nearly gone to the Saudi Pro League last summer, there was more interest this year and Galatasaray have also pushed to sign the Brazilian but City are determined to keep him and look to be winning that battle.”
