∗The transfer window is finally closed but the debates are only just beginning. Fans across England are now asking the same question, who really made the best signing of the summer. Billions were spent, big names moved, and the Premier League once again proved that it is the biggest stage for drama in football. Everyone expected Alexander Isak at Liverpool or Florian Wirtz to top the charts, but Paul Scholes has shocked many by choosing a completely different player as his signing of the window. The Manchester United legend has pointed at Manchester City’s move for Gianluigi Donnarumma, calling it unbelievable and even going as far as to say that he would have signed him for United tomorrow if he had the chance. In a summer dominated by mega deals and headline names, Scholes has turned the spotlight on a goalkeeper who only cost £26 million but may change the future of City.
To understand the shock, you have to remember how wild this summer was. Liverpool spent huge money under Arne Slot, bringing in Alexander Isak from Newcastle for £125 million and Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen in another blockbuster deal. Arsenal strengthened their squad, Chelsea moved players in and out like a revolving door, and Manchester United under Ruben Amorim tried to reshape their squad. All of this came together to create a Premier League spending record of £3.19 billion. That number dwarfs what happened in Spain, Italy or Germany. The Premier League is playing on its own level, and the big names were expected to dominate the conversation. But Paul Scholes did not follow the crowd, he looked at one signing and saw something that others ignored.
Manchester City, under Pep Guardiola, made a move that many did not expect. They went for Gianluigi Donnarumma, the Italian goalkeeper who made his name at AC Milan before moving to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021. Donnarumma was once called the golden boy of goalkeepers, a teenager playing like a veteran, and many believed he would dominate world football for years. At PSG, his time was mixed. He had incredible saves, incredible nights, but also moments when fans and managers questioned him. Luis Enrique, the current PSG boss, was never fully convinced because of one key weakness, Donnarumma is not great with his feet. In the modern game, especially at clubs like PSG and Manchester City, goalkeepers are not just there to save shots, they are expected to start attacks, to play like midfielders. Donnarumma never looked comfortable in that role, and Enrique decided it was time to move him on. That is when City moved.
For £26 million, Guardiola brought Donnarumma to Manchester. Many were surprised. City already had Ederson, one of the best keepers in the world and one of the most comfortable with the ball at his feet. They also signed James Trafford earlier in the summer, a young English goalkeeper many believed would be developed for the future. So why Donnarumma? That was the question that left fans and pundits divided. But for Paul Scholes, the answer was simple. The price, the quality, the pedigree, it all made sense. To get a goalkeeper of Donnarumma’s level, a player with 74 caps for Italy, a player who has already won the Euros and played Champions League football, for only £26 million, that was an unbelievable deal.
On his Instagram, Scholes wrote that Donnarumma has to be the signing of the window. He even joked about his own club, saying apart from the 14 signings Salford City made, Donnarumma was clearly the best piece of business in England. But his praise did not stop there. Speaking on The Overlap, he admitted he would have taken Donnarumma at Manchester United without hesitation. For him, Donnarumma is a world-class keeper who can win you games, who can stand tall when everything else is falling apart. That kind of player is priceless, and for £26 million, it is robbery.
Yet even while praising the deal, Scholes could not help but point out something strange. He admitted it feels odd for Guardiola to go for Donnarumma, because Pep’s system is built on goalkeepers who are almost midfielders in disguise. Ederson is the perfect example. His passing range, his calmness on the ball, his ability to create attacks with one pass, it has been key to City’s success. Donnarumma does not have that. He is a giant, a shot stopper, a wall on the line, but he is not someone you trust with short passes under pressure. Scholes said it is the same reason PSG let him go, and he still cannot fully see him as a City goalkeeper in Pep’s system. But sometimes football is about more than tactics, sometimes it is about presence, aura, and pure goalkeeping, and that is where Donnarumma shines.
The Italian goalkeeper is only 26 years old, but he has already lived a lifetime in football. From his teenage debut at AC Milan where he instantly became a hero, to the heartbreaks of missing out on the World Cup with Italy, to the glory of winning Euro 2020 where he saved penalties in the final, his story has been full of highs and lows. He carries himself with confidence, sometimes even arrogance, but that is what makes him special. At Manchester City, he now has the chance to write the next chapter. The fans at the Etihad will demand he proves himself, because this is not a club that waits. They are built to win now, every season is about trophies. For Donnarumma, it is both a risk and an opportunity.
James Trafford, who was seen as City’s future keeper, is now pushed aside. Ederson, who has been Guardiola’s trusted number one, may now face questions about his own place. The arrival of Donnarumma changes everything. Competition will be fierce, and Guardiola will have tough decisions to make. But for Paul Scholes, none of that matters, because what matters most is that City got one of the best keepers in the world for a price that is almost nothing compared to today’s market. When players like Isak and Wirtz are going for over £100 million, getting Donnarumma for £26 million feels like daylight robbery.
That is why Scholes has snubbed Isak and Wirtz. He is not saying they are bad players, he knows they are world class. But for him, the value, the shrewdness, and the potential impact of Donnarumma makes it the best signing of the summer. He believes United should have moved for him, he believes any club would have been lucky to get him, but it was City who made the move, and now the rest of the league will have to deal with it.
As the season begins, all eyes will be on Donnarumma. Can he adapt to Pep’s style, can he prove the doubters wrong, can he finally settle at a club where he is trusted and loved? Those are the questions waiting to be answered. But for now, Paul Scholes has made his verdict clear. In a summer of billion-pound madness, the signing that stood out to him was not the flashy forward or the creative midfielder, it was the giant Italian goalkeeper who may yet decide where the trophies end up.
