Man City summer signing wants OUT! England hopeful James Trafford desperate for January exit just five months after sealing Etihad switch

The whole football world woke up in shock as reports came out that Manchester City summer signing James Trafford wants to leave the club only five months after returning to the Etihad Stadium. It sounds crazy because many fans believed coming back to City would be the biggest dream of his life, but right now it is turning into the biggest frustration he has ever experienced as a footballer. The story of James Trafford is now the new drama pulling attention inside the blue half of Manchester, and everything happening is bringing tension, confusion, and fear because nobody expected things to fall apart this fast. When he returned from Burnley in the summer, Trafford thought he was coming back home to become a hero, the next first-choice goalkeeper for Manchester City, the future England number one, and the young star goalkeeper Pep Guardiola could trust for the next 10 years. But football has a way of embarrassing people when they are least expecting it, and right now Trafford feels embarrassed, betrayed, ignored, and pushed aside. That is why the news is everywhere that he is desperate to leave immediately once the January transfer window opens, all because he wants to save his international future and not watch his career collapse on the bench at the Etihad.

When he was playing for Burnley last season, Trafford was like a king between the posts. He helped Burnley keep 30 clean sheets in the Championship, something only Port Vale achieved way back in 1953-54. Burnley conceded only 16 league goals in 46 matches, meaning most teams could not find a way to score past him. Burnley finished the season with 100 points and earned promotion to the Premier League in style. The whole of England saw Trafford as the young goalkeeper who was ready to take over the world. He played every match, he saved impossible shots, he gave confidence to the whole Burnley team, and the fans loved him like crazy. Even Premier League clubs were fighting to sign him because they knew this goalkeeper was special. Newcastle United were the club most ready to take him, and their manager Eddie Howe had already started planning a complete rebuild of his goalkeeping department with Trafford at the center of it. Newcastle wanted him badly. The deal was almost sealed. But Manchester City used their matching rights clause because they developed Trafford before selling him in 2023, and that clause gave them the power to take him back if they wanted. So immediately City stepped in and blocked the move to Newcastle. And it looked like a good thing at the time because the fans believed City would make Trafford the next big goalkeeper to replace Ederson long-term. Trafford himself believed it too. He thought it was a sign that the club loved him, trusted him, and respected his talent. But everything changed when Gianluigi Donnarumma entered the picture.1

Trafford started Manchester City’s first three Premier League games of the season against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton. At that moment he believed his story was on track. He was happy. He was sure he made the right decision to return. Manchester City fans also began to see hope in him and slowly began to love him more every match. But just like football always finds a way to introduce drama, Guardiola signed Donnarumma from Paris Saint-Germain after the Italian goalkeeper lost his starting spot to Lucas Chevalier from Lille. Donnarumma arrived at City with a big reputation as a former European Championship winner, a former world best goalkeeper and a man who played in the biggest matches in Europe. Once Donnarumma arrived, everything changed for Trafford. Guardiola started playing Donnarumma more and more until Trafford slowly became a substitute watching everything from the bench. It feels painful when you are young and hungry to prove yourself, but every week the coach picks someone else ahead of you. Trafford tried to stay calm and positive in public, but inside he was dying. He wanted a chance to compete. He wanted a chance to grow. But Guardiola trusted the Italian more and slowly Trafford became just a cup goalkeeper, playing in the Carabao Cup against smaller teams like Huddersfield and Swansea. When City played Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, Trafford got a chance only because Guardiola changed ten players in the lineup, not because he was the preferred choice. It felt like a slap to him even though he tried to hide the pain.

Right now Donnarumma has made 14 appearances already and Trafford has become the forgotten goalkeeper on the bench. Even Stefan Ortega, the goalkeeper who used to be a reliable number two for City, has dropped down the pecking order because of Donnarumma’s arrival and the signing of Marcus Bettinelli from Chelsea. The goalkeeper department at Manchester City is now overloaded and chaotic. Someone has to leave, and Trafford has decided he will not wait until the summer. He wants to leave in January and go somewhere he will be the number one goalkeeper immediately. The rumors say Newcastle are still there waiting for him and they are ready to try again. Newcastle still believe he is the future. But Manchester City may also lose Ortega in January which makes everything more complicated. If Ortega leaves, City might block Trafford again, and that is the nightmare that is making Trafford very afraid. The biggest reason he wants to leave is not just Manchester City. It is also England. England manager Thomas Tuchel has already warned players that only those who play regularly for their clubs will go to the 2026 World Cup. Trafford worked very hard for years to break into the England squad. Right now he is scared of losing everything if he remains on the Manchester City bench. For him, the World Cup is a life dream, and he is not ready to sacrifice that dream because Guardiola prefers Donnarumma.

The tension became even bigger after Saturday’s match between Leeds United and Manchester City. After City were leading 2–0 and Leeds came back 2–2 through Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha, Donnarumma suddenly went down injured, and while he was receiving treatment for two minutes Guardiola used the moment to call his players to the touchline and give them fresh instructions. Immediately after that team talk, City scored in stoppage time to win 3–2 through Phil Foden. Leeds manager Daniel Farke was not happy at all. After the game he accused Donnarumma of faking injury so City could “bend the rules” and turn the break into a tactical coaching moment. He said everybody could see what really happened, even though he didn’t want to cause trouble because it was technically still within the rules of football. But that comment made the drama even bigger because now Donnarumma, the man Trafford is fighting against for the starting spot, is in the middle of controversy. Some fans are now calling Donnarumma a smart goalkeeper who used experience to help his team, while others are calling him a cheat. The drama is now attracting the whole football world, and nobody knows how Guardiola will respond. What is clear is that Donnarumma will start again when City face Fulham on Tuesday while Trafford sits on the bench watching his dream fade away one match at a time.

Trafford’s heart is heavy right now. The dressing room atmosphere is not helping him. The pressure from the media is not helping him. The fear of missing the World Cup is not helping him. He feels stuck, and that is why he is now ready to push for an exit. Even if it means upsetting Guardiola, even if it means fighting the club he once loved, he is ready to leave. He wants his career back. He wants to play football again. He wants to feel important again. What makes this situation even more emotional is how fast things changed. One minute everybody wanted him. One minute he was the future of Manchester City. One minute he was the goalkeeper who helped Burnley record 30 clean sheets. The next minute he is just a backup goalkeeper waiting on the bench like someone who has no value. It is painful for him because he knows he is good enough to play every week in the Premier League. But football is a cruel sport, and Guardiola’s world is not a place where emotions matter. Guardiola does whatever he thinks is best for winning. Right now Guardiola believes Donnarumma gives him more advantage, and Trafford is the unlucky one suffering from that decision.

The January transfer window will be a turning point for Trafford. If City allow him to leave, a new chapter begins for him and maybe his England dream is saved. If City block him again, then the tension will grow bigger, and we might witness further drama between a frustrated young player and a powerful manager who does not like players questioning his decisions. Trafford already knows that staying until the end of the season could destroy his World Cup chances, and that is why he is ready to fight for the move. Right now he is not thinking about trophies. He is not thinking about winning the Premier League or the Champions League. His mind is on regular football, his England future, his identity as a goalkeeper, and his desire to prove himself again.

Manchester City fans are now divided. Some believe Trafford should be patient because Donnarumma will not play every match forever and his chance will come. Others believe City are killing the career of a young English talent by ignoring him and keeping him on the bench. Some fans blame Guardiola for choosing a big name instead of believing in the future. Other fans blame Trafford for moving to City in the first place when he knew they would always go for superstar names. But the real truth is this situation is painful for everyone involved. Trafford does not want to disrespect the club. He just wants to play football. Guardiola does not hate him. He just prefers Donnarumma. The club does not want to lose him. They just want to keep their squad strong. But football does not wait for anybody, and Trafford cannot watch his career sink.

Right now the whole football community is waiting for what will happen next. Newcastle are ready to return for him. Other clubs are watching the situation closely. City might fight to keep him. Trafford might fight harder to leave. And somewhere in England, Thomas Tuchel is watching everything quietly and taking notes because every decision Trafford makes in the next 30 days will affect his chances of flying to North America for the World Cup. Trafford is running out of time. January will decide his fate. If he stays, he risks losing his international dream. If he leaves, he gets his future back.

Football is not just a game. It is a battlefield of emotions, sacrifices, dreams, and heartbreaks. Right now James Trafford is right in the middle of that battlefield. The whole world is watching. The clock is ticking. Everything now depends on January.