James Trafford Calls Man City Spell "Horrendous"

James Trafford says sitting on the sidelines at Manchester City last season was a "horrendous" feeling. The goalkeeper, now at Leeds United, discussed his time at City on Football Daily's The Football Interview, BBC Sport reported.

City brought him back in July 2025, two years after he had left the club to join Burnley. He is an academy graduate, which means he came through the club's youth system. He arrived as a player who had been there before, but the job at the top of the pitch was already taken.

Less than six weeks after Trafford's return, City signed Gianluigi Donnarumma from Paris St-Germain. Donnarumma had helped PSG win the Champions League, European football's biggest club prize, only weeks earlier. He quickly became City's first-choice goalkeeper, meaning the first name the manager writes on the team sheet.

Trafford started City's first three games of the campaign. After Donnarumma arrived, he made just one more Premier League start in 35 matches. Yet he was in goal for the League Cup and FA Cup finals at Wembley, and City won both trophies. Trafford said he had to play regularly this season for his own mental wellbeing.

He was also part of England's squad for the 2026 World Cup, but he did not get a game.

In the summer, Trafford moved to Leeds in search of regular football. The club's own reporting said he put pen to paper at Elland Road and gave an interview on the spot. He said he does not care if he has a point to prove, and that he knows what he can do. The deal is worth up to £45m, a figure that includes possible add-on payments, and it is a record fee for a British goalkeeper.

Fellow keeper Michael Zetterer said he was happy to work with Trafford, calling him a big signing with big potential. Trafford has now started all nine of Leeds' Premier League matches this season. He has kept three clean sheets, meaning three games without conceding a goal.

For a goalkeeper, the hardest part of a bench season is often the waiting. Trafford's comments show how much a player can need the weekly game, not just the shirt. Leeds have given him that chance, and his next test is keeping the goals out for a club that is still climbing the table.