Journalist Fabrizio Romano has provided a major update regarding James Trafford and Manchester City just minutes after it looked as though a deal with Newcastle United was back on.
This week has been full of upset and disappointment, but there is still a chance it could end on a high. After missing the defeat to Celtic, Newcastle United decided against putting Alexander Isak on the plane to Asia for their pre-season tour.
It was then revealed that Isak wants to leave Newcastle after serious interest from Liverpool. The Reds made an informal approach for the Sweden international in July but they were met with heavy resistance from Newcastle.
Manchester City have been in talks with James Trafford, but the feeling was that a transfer fee could not be agreed with Burnley. However, it now appears that a fee has finally been agreed, and Newcastle are going to miss out on yet another top target in what is proving to be a dreadful summer.
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Manchester City have agreed a deal with Burnley for James Trafford
Newcastle had Trafford as their top goalkeeper target, and it looked at one point as if he was going to be joining the Magpies. Unfortunately, Eddie Howe’s recruitment team were not able to agree to a transfer fee, despite personal terms being agreed with the player for a long time.
It was reported that Trafford had even been telling people he was joining Newcastle, so a deal must have been far down the line for him to be saying such things.
Trafford has trained alone over the last week, with the shot-stopper not being spotted in Portugal with the Burnley squad. Now, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Man City have agreed a deal with Burnley for Trafford.
Romano added that Trafford said yes to Man City because Pep Guardiola personally told him about how much he wanted to sign him. The deal is believed to be much less than the £40million buy-back clause Man City had. Trafford will sign a five-year deal with an option of an extra year.
Newcastle United players seemed ready to welcome James Trafford
There appears to be no reprieve this summer, with player after player rejecting a move to Tyneside in favour of another Premier League side. The same has happened with Liam Delap, Joao Pedro, Hugo Ekitike and now Trafford.
Many were convinced Trafford was going to become a Newcastle player, but once again, the club have let a near-done deal slip out of their hands. Fans cannot help but get frustrated at the lack of incomings and the reluctance to make deals happen when the opportunities are there.
Even Newcastle players were preparing for Trafford’s arrival. Nick Pope said he would see Trafford soon in a comment on social media, while an interaction with Joe White was seen in the comments section of an Instagram post.
Some even thought Trafford was desperate to join Newcastle, so it is baffling that the deal was not able to get over the line. Newcastle must now look at replacements, but it remains to be seen whether another goalkeeper comes through the door.
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