‘Cost his team’ – Carragher tells Man City to fix £35m problem in the summer transfer window
Jamie Carragher has told Manchester City they need to fix one major squad issue this summer after their defeat to Real Madrid.
Despite having taken the lead on two occasions, Carlo Ancelotti’s side roared back late in the game to secure a 3-2 lead to take back to the Bernabeu for their second leg next week.
It marked another disappointing occasion this season for City as they fell to their 12th defeat of the season and it looks like this current crop of players are coming to the end of their tenure.
One player who has been called out by fans and pundits is goalkeeper Ederson, whose poor kick led to the second equaliser while he was caught out of position for the third, leaving Carragher to take aim at the Brazilian in the aftermath of the defeat.
“We’re at the stage now that Manchester City need a new goalkeeper,” he said. “Ederson has been fantastic for Man City with the ball but in terms of being a goalkeeper he’s cost them tonight and they need him cos he’s a really senior figure.
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“He’s been there, he’s done it and he’s won all the leagues and the Champions Leagues and this has been going on too long with him,” Carragher added.
“That’s nowhere near enough at this level of football – he’s cost his team the game there.”
Ederson’s decline
Despite entering his goalkeeping ‘prime’ at 32, the £35million signing from Benfica has shown a dip in his performance levels and backup keeper Stefan Ortega has played noticeably more this season as a result.
Talks of a move to Saudi Arabia fuelled the previous summer window and with Ederson’s contract currently running until 2026, a move away looks increasingly likely, with Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad reportedly interested.
He has been a key part of City’s dominance since arriving in 2017, helping them to win six Premier League titles and a Champions League while also winning the Golden Glove on three occasions and featuring in the Men’s World 11 on one occasion.
However, having kept just five clean sheets in 24 games this season, there has been a fall-off which could lead to his exit, with Saudi Arabia being one destination he was previously linked with.
Despite all the talk of a decline, the figures show that he is still preventing goals in the Premier League. His post-shot expected goals figure is in the positive this season with +2.5 while it was +1.2 for the entirety of last season.
In fact, the average across his City career is +3.0 but his save percentage has dropped in recent years going from an average of 76% from 2018-2021 to 67% in the four years since.
End of an era
Ederson is one of several players who have played out their peak years at City, winning trophies galore and setting unprecedented records.
Kevin De Bruyne is in the final year of his current deal and could exit in the summer, while Kyle Walker has already departed for AC Milan albeit on loan, but a permanent exit looks likely.
Bernardo Silva is now 30 and is past his true best while Ilkay Gundogan, at 34, is also a figure who could exit this summer with his deal set to expire.
With multiple January additions that included Omar Marmoush, Vitor Reis, Abdukodir Khusanov and Nico Gonzalez, the tide has already begun to turn for City – and Ederson’s exit in the summer could be a true confirmation that a new era is here.
