Manchester City have already sent a statement to the rest of Europe that they are ready to challenge for major silverware next season, having signed Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Ait-Nouri.
However, Pep Guardiola will be hoping to win trophies in the 2025/2026 season and if that means City have to further splash the cash, the decision-makers at the Etihad Stadium might be on board.
Tino Livramento is on Manchester City’s radar and the Sky Blues are waiting to see if they can snap the former Chelsea right-back up from Newcastle United this summer.
Manchester City were in talks to sign Ardon Jashari and only time will tell whether they actually amplify their efforts to sign the Swiss midfielder.
Iker Casillas tipped Man City target to be Diogo Costa a star in 2018
Diogo Costa is another player who City have been heavily linked with.
Manchester City are interested in signing Costa in case Ederson Moraes leaves after the FIFA Club World Cup, and the former could be available for £51.1 million.
Iker Casillas, who played alongside the Portuguese number one at Porto raved about him in 2018, as he was quoted by The Athletic: “There is a star coming through. He’s called Diogo Costa.”
As Manchester City have admired Costa for ages, Casillas’ words will be music to their ears as he added seven years ago: “I think he’s going to be a superb goalkeeper.”
Diogo Costa stats compared to Ederson
The Spaniard is one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time and his positive verdict would be worth its weight in gold for Pep Guardiola and Co.
Aside from being impressed by Iker Casillas’ claim, Manchester City will be closely analysing how Costa’s stats compare to Ederson’s.
| STATS PER 90 OVER 365 DAYS | DIOGO COSTA | EDERSON MORAES |
| PSxG-GA | +0.1 | +0.05 |
| SAVE PERCENTAGE | 74.1% | 66.4% |
| DEFENSIVE ACTIONS OUTSIDE PENALTY AREA | 1.59 | 1.95 |
| LAUNCH PERCENTAGE | 23.3% | 16.9% |
| CROSSES STOPPED PERCENTAGE | 6.1% | 6.1% |
The metrics prove that Costa has the edge on Ederson in terms of his PSxG-GA (post-shot expected goals minus goals allowed per 90, +0.1) and his save percentage (75%) as well.
However, the Brazilian seems much more proactive at sweeping away any signs of danger outside the box, registering 1.95 defensive actions outside the area per game over the past year while on the ball, he launches just 16.9% of his goal kicks — a sign that he is more accustomed to playing in a possession-based side.
