Manchester City are not unfamiliar with seeing players moving in and out of the club during summer transfer windows.
Looking back over the previous summer period, the Citizens saw the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, Cole Palmer, Riyad Mahrez and Aymeric Laporte wave goodbye to the Etihad Stadium.
In the same window, City welcomed Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku, Josko Gvardiol and Matheus Nunes to Pep Guardiola’s side.
After the Blues secured a fourth consecutive Premier League trophy at the end of their previous campaign, more players have been mentioned to be potentially moving in and out of the club.
Now – however – a pundit and former top-flight player has made a claim on this very topic concerning the Manchester club.
- Man City summer transfer window 2024: Confirmed signings, departures, loan exits and releases
Darren Bent assesses potential Ederson exit amid Saudi Arabia links
Speaking in a recent video shared on the talkSPORT YouTube channel, Darren Bent had this to say on the subject of Ederson’s potential move to Saudi Arabia this summer.
He said: “Do you know what? Probably to the outside world, and that’s me and you included, to us, we will be like wow, I can’t believe they let Ederson go, one of the best goalkeepers in Premier League history, but you know what Pep’s like.
“He gets to a situation where we all think he has let a player go too early and he’s like see I told you it was about the next.
“So, if Pep is allowing Ederson to go, he must have something up his sleeves where he knows someone’s either coming in or it’s [Stefan] Ortega’s time.
“So, for me, I still think he is one of the best goalkeepers out there, but Pep is a master of letting players go at the right time. And if he feels Ederson’s time is up at Manchester City or he can find someone better now, then I am guessing you have got to respect that decision now because he has got it right so many times.”
City would need to land a replacement for Ederson
Earlier this month, it was reported by journalist Cesar Luis Merlo on his X account that Saudi Pro League side, Al Nassr, have offered Ederson a two-year contract worth €60m (£50m).
With the Brazilian, who Danny Murphy said earlier this year is the best footballing goalkeeper in Premier League history, being City’s first-choice shot-stopper and making 43 appearances across all competitions last season, this says to us that if Ederson were to leave the club this summer, they would need to bring in a suitable replacement.
