James Trafford has claimed he knew he would save a penalty before England under-21s’ dramatic victory over Spain in the final of the European Championships.
Trafford was the hero, keeping out Abel Ruiz’s late spot-kick and Aimar Oroz’s follow-up to ensure the Young Lions beat Spain 1-0 in the final on Saturday. Curtis Jones’ goal, which came via a fortunate deflection from Cole Palmer’s free-kick, was enough to seal the title – England’s third in total, but first since 1984.
Trafford is currently a Manchester City academy player, but he is set to play Premier League football next season at Burnley. Vincent Kompany’s side have agreed to pay City an initial fee of £15million plus a potential £4m in add-ons for the 20-year-old goalkeeper.
England didn’t concede a single goal at the Under-21s Euros and Trafford showed he has the innate confidence to go with his ability in his post-match interview.
“I told everyone this morning I was going to save a pen and, when it was a penalty, I knew I was going to save it, so it was pretty easy, to be honest,” he told UEFA TV. “I told all my mates back home I was going to save one.”
His penalty save, which came after Levi Colwill was adjudged to have fouled Ruiz, meant Lee Carsley’s side became the first in the competition’s history to not concede a single goal.
Trafford said: “It means a lot for us, the record because it will take a massive effort to get broken. But we’re a very good team and we believe that no one can score against us and we showed it.”
Anthony Gordon, who joined Newcastle in a £45m transfer from Everton in January, was chosen as player of the tournament after starring up front alongside Nottingham Forest's Morgan Gibbs-White. He was happy to get the recognition but paid tribute to Trafford.
He said: “I’m absolutely delighted. I feel I have had a good tournament, but me with the individual trophy is down to my team-mates and the staff.
“The squad is really unselfish. Six or seven of us might have won it, that shows how good we’ve been. Trafford could have been player of the tournament. He was incredible. I’ve never seen a goalkeeper perform like that with my own eyes.”
Trafford has never played for City’s first team in a competitive match. He has been loaned out for the past two seasons, making 11 appearances for Accrington Stanley during the first half of the 2021/22 campaign before switching to Bolton Wanderers, where he has excelled over the past 18 months.
He made 52 appearances for Bolton and caught the eye of Burnley, who signed him after missing out on Bart Verbruggen, who joined Brighton from Anderlecht.
