Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma is set to join Manchester City, replacing Ederson who is rumoured to be joining Fenerbahce after eight years in Manchester. According to Fabrizio Romano, Donnarumma will be replacing the brazilian goalkeeper which leaves question marks into the way Pep Guardiola wants to set his team up due to the differing styles of the two keepers.
Saying goodbye to a club legend
Ederson joined City in 2017 and since then has not only won 18 trophies but has revolutionised the goalkeeping position in England. The Brazilian international is praised for his incredible ball playing ability much more than his shot stopping, which in the past was almost the sole purpose of the keeper in a team. Ederson‘s passing range being better than most outfielders allowed City to build up with 11 players rather than 10 which allows everyone else to push further up the pitch and give the freedom to the midfield and attacking players to work solely in the opposition half. Despite a drop in form last season, Ederson will be remembered as a club legend after winning six premier league titles and his best season coming during the 2022/23 treble winning season which saw the blues win their first UEFA Champions League trophy.
🚨🟡🔵 BREAKING: Éderson to Fenerbahçe, here we go! Verbal agreement in place for Brazilian GK to join Fener.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 1, 2025
Fee around €13/14m to Man City for Éderson and as also personal terms are agreed with his agent Jorge Mendes and director Devin Özek.
Up next: Donnarumma and City. 👀 pic.twitter.com/3QsxXvk7f7
Is Pep changing his style?
With the imminent arrival of PSG’s treble winning goalkeeper Donnarumma it seems that Guardiola is going to somewhat be changing his approach, specifically in the build-up.
Since Pep’s arrival in 2016, City have always tried to build from the back as much as possible which relied heavily on their goalkeeper being confident on the ball, such as Claudio Bravo and the departing Ederson. Gigi Donnarumma is a completely different type of keeper and is seen as an old school goalkeeper as his shot stopping ability and presence is one of the best in the world but his ball playing ability leaves a lot to be desired.
The Italian number one did cope in a PSG side who played great football on the way to their first UCL trophy last season, but could the pace and intensity of the Premier League prove too much for Donnarumma? Could Pep be turning to a more direct route, relying on longer passes towards Erling Haaland to get City up the pitch rather than almost solely relying on the goalkeeper and defenders to break teams down to give the attacking players the space to create chances and score goals.
🚨💣 EXCLUSIVE: Gigio Donnarumma to Manchester City, HERE WE GO! 🇮🇹
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 1, 2025
Deal done for the Italian GK to join Man City project from Paris Saint-Germain. Medical this afternoon.
Long term deal agreed weeks ago and all done between the two clubs after Éderson signed for Fenerbahçe. pic.twitter.com/TawF4X8nib
The James Trafford situation
Earlier in the window Manchester City re-signed academy product James Trafford from Burnley and gave him the number 1 shirt as well as starting him in their first three games of the season. However, Donnarumma’s arrival means Trafford will likely become a number two as the Italian is too big of a name to be coming in to sit on the bench behind a younger goalkeeper.
With it being a World Cup year Trafford would be hoping to at least be in the squad if not challenging for the number one position but that seems unlikely now with Donnarumma’s imminent arrival. With Ederson and possibly Stefan Ortega also leaving, City would need another keeper but Trafford may have been expecting a number two to come in behind him which means the Englishman would be Pep’s first choice for the season.
After making a big error against Spurs, Pep and the board may have realised that Trafford isn’t quite at the level they want or maybe Donnarumma being available, after being exiled from the PSG squad, was too big of an opportunity to turn down.
Will Donnarumma change City’s fortunes?
On the surface Donnarumma is obviously a better shot stopper than Ederson, Trafford and Ortega and so his ability will bail City out at times especially in the Champions League with it being knockout format and Penalty shootouts being a strong point for the Italian. But as a whole Pep’s side have struggled defensively in the past 12 months and so despite his shot stopping being world class he will come under a lot of pressure especially against teams with pace on the counter attack.
The PSG man will not fix this side as the problems are much deeper than just replacing a goalkeeper, but the shift to playing longer could improve a side who are struggling to build from the back and create chances as often as they did in previous years.
