James Trafford to Leeds: Fourth-most expensive goalkeeper in history is viewed as England's next No 1

James Trafford will become the most expensive British goalkeeper in history with his £40m switch from Manchester City to Leeds.

The fee makes him the fourth-most expensive goalkeeper overall, behind only Kepa Arrizabalaga, who joined Chelsea for £72m from Athletic Club, Alisson, who cost Liverpool £67m from Roma, and Andre Onana, who joined Manchester United from Inter for £47.2m.

It's a hefty sum for a goalkeeper with only 32 top-flight appearances under his belt and it comes only a year after Manchester City paid £27m to re-sign him from Burnley. So, why is the 23-year-old deemed to be worth the expense?

Trafford expected to be City's No 1 when he returned to the club he first joined as a 12-year-old last year but ended up being second-choice after the club made moved to sign Gianluigi Donnarumma from Paris Saint-Germain late in the transfer window.

Donnarumma's arrival meant that, after starting the first three Premier League games of the campaign, Trafford's appearances were limited to the cup competitions until a start in the 2-1 loss to Aston Villa on the final day of the campaign.

Before those four Premier League appearances for City, Trafford's only top-flight appearances had come during a relegation season for Burnley in 2023/24, when Trafford conceded 62 goals in 28 games from shots with an expected goal value much lower, at 55.02.

Those underlying numbers raised questions about his shot-stopping, but the experience proved invaluable for the young goalkeeper and he bounced back with a record-breaking campaign in the second tier, only conceding 16 times in 45 games as the Clarets won promotion back to the Premier League.

Trafford was described as "world-class" by Scott Parker and the former Burnley boss is clearly not alone in that view.

Trafford, who kept six clean sheets during England U21s's successful European Championship campaign in 2023, has since won two senior caps for the national side and is viewed as their future No 1 by those who have worked with him.