Gianluigi Donnarumma is officially a Manchester City player after the Italian completed his move from Paris Saint-Germain on deadline day.
Donnarumma has signed for Man City as part of a £30m deal, with the 26-year-old replacing Ederson at the Etihad Stadium after the Brazilian decided to start a new chapter in his career by moving to Turkey to play for Fenerbahce.
The arrival of Donnarumma has excited the majority of the Manchester club’s fans, who will now have to wait until after the international break to see their new goalkeeper in action.
The Italian is expected to make his debut against Manchester United on September 14, and the last time a new Man City goalkeeper made his debut against the Red Devils, it did not go very well.
Gianluigi Donnarumma will look to avoid Claudio Bravo horror show against Man United
Manchester City completed the signing of Claudio Bravo from Barcelona during the summer of 2016, and the Chilean was thrown straight in at the deep end, making his debut against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Pep Guardiola won his first Manchester derby 2-1; however, Bravo was a big talking point after the match, as he failed to deal with a Wayne Rooney free-kick, allowing Zlatan Ibrahimovic to turn the ball home.
The former Barca star made several other mistakes, while United boss Jose Mourinho claimed the Chilean should have been sent off early in the second half after running into trouble in his box and lunging at Rooney.
It was a horror show of a debut for Bravo, but the former City goalkeeper stated after the contest that he felt good in the Manchester club’s net.
“Good, good – comfortable,” Bravo told Sky Sports when asked how he felt after his performance. “We have a team here that has personality, we are improving day by day, and the matches that we want to win are these, against our rivals, and for that reason, I am happy.”
Donnarumma will be looking to avoid a repeat of this after the international break, but there is a possibility that it could happen.
The Manchester derby may come too soon for Gianluigi Donnarumma
When Donnarumma gets back from international duty, the goalkeeper will only have a few days of training with his new Man City teammates and, therefore, will not be fully prepared to face Man United, as he will not have understood everything Guardiola will want from him in time for the derby.
Many have questioned Man City’s decision to sign Donnarumma, as the 26-year-old is not good with the ball at his feet, and another weakness is his ability to come out and claim crosses, which will unsettle Guardiola’s back four, who are very used to playing with Ederson.
Starting James Trafford against Man United would be the safe bet, but that is unlikely to happen, and all the ingredients for a tough day for Donnarumma are there.
Man United is not the ideal fixture for the Italian to be making his debut in, but on the other hand, the new Man City star could make himself an instant hero with a solid display against the Red Devils.
