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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Daniel Murphy

Man City are already preparing their ideal Ederson replacement

It won't be for a while yet but one day Manchester City will have to replace Ederson.

That will be one unenviable task. From the moment Ederson arrived in the Premier League in 2017 he immediately established himself as one of, if not the, best goalkeepers in the country and that remains the case nearly five years later.

Following City's potentially title-clinching 1-0 victory over Chelsea on Saturday, the Brazilian has now kept clean sheets in exactly half of his league appearances, with 83 in 166 games. He is the only goalkeeper with at least 100 appearances to reach that feat in the competition's history.

But as all know, it's not only Ederson's ability with his hands that makes him so good but what he can do with his feet as well.

Confidence and composure in possession, a good touch, great vision and the capability to hit some astonishing long passes the near-full length of the pitch to rocket launch attacks.

Pep Guardiola would not be able to play the amazing football his team produces if it wasn't for Ederson, who allows the side to press so high up the pitch and suffocate nearly every opposing side. He is such a crucial cog to the machine and finding someone able to do the job he does will be extremely difficult.

So instead of doing that, City appear to be nurturing one. More than one, in fact.

Ever since Phil Foden blazed a path into the first-team, much has been said about the quality of young players that is being produced in the club's academy.

However, much of that praise tends to be focused on the exciting, dynamic playmakers that are coming through and, though that is hardly surprising considering the potential of Cole Palmer and James McAtee, to name just two, other positions tend to go unnoticed.

Goalkeeper is one of them.

Jamie Trafford joined City when he was just 12-years-old and now 19 he is highly-rated at the club, having spent a lot of time around the first-team last season and being named on the bench on six occasions.

This season has seen the England Under-20 international leave the club on loan to gain valuable first-team experience, though his move to Accrington Stanley didn't go to plan.

In 11 games he conceded 26 goals and lost his place after a 4-0 defeat to Burton Albion in November. As a result, he was recalled and joined Bolton for the rest of the season instead, making his debut on Saturday.

Jamie Trafford launches another pinpoint kick (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Things already look much brighter than they did in Accrington for Trafford, as he helped his new team pick up their first win and first clean sheet in League One since November 23 as they defeated Ipswich Town 2-0.

The teenager was called upon to make three smart saves and had good control of his box as he was bombarded by 12 corners throughout the 90 minutes.

After signing a young goalkeeper on loan didn't go well for Bolton last season, many fans were questioning Trafford's arrival yet he quickly quelled their concerns with an assured display on his debut.

What stood out the most, however, was, just like Ederson, his ability with the ball at his feet.

Some early nerves resulted in a couple of wayward passes but once those settled Trafford was spraying the ball around the pitch with the easy nonchalance of City's no.1. It was eerie how similar his body language was when hitting a 50-yard cross-field pass to the Brazilan.

No matter how quickly he was being closed down or how nervous the supporters were all around him, Trafford always maintained his composure and patience before then picking out the right pass.

It was only one game and he may never make his debut for City, but it's obvious how much training with the first team has rubbed off on him and how the club want to develop their goalkeepers going forward.

With fellow 19-year-old Gavin Bazunu also continuing to impress on loan at Portsmouth and for the Republic of Ireland this season, City look pretty well stocked in the position for some years yet.

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