Southampton must beat Leicester City to Man City transfer - it will help massively | OneFootball

Both the Saints and the Foxes have been linked with an ambitious loan move for Man City goalkeeper James Trafford.

Southampton have been one of the Championship’s biggest disappointments this season.

The Saints arrived back in the division after a torrid year in the Premier League, where they narrowly avoided becoming the competition’s worst ever side by outscoring Derby County’s infamous 2007/08 team by a single point.

Will Still was appointed as manager, which led to much excitement among supporters due to his well-documented exploits in French football.

Coupled with some positive signings such as Tom Fellows, Finn Azaz and Damion Downs, there was real hope that good times could be on the horizon once more at St. Mary’s.

However, that didn’t prove to be the case. Still would only win four of the 16 matches he took charge of in all competitions, resulting in a lowly win percentage of just 25 per cent.

A run of three straight league defeats and no victories in five matches was too much for the higher-ups at Southampton to take, and the 33-year-old was subsequently relieved of his duties following their 2-0 home defeat to Preston.

There have been several reasons for the Saints’ poor performances so far this term, such as a failure to convert possession into goalscoring opportunities. Uncertainty between the sticks has been another major fault and is something Southampton can’t afford not to address in January.

Southampton must beat Leicester City to James Trafford, Manchester City transfer

For any team to make credible progress up the Championship, they need a safe pair of hands in goal.

Southampton have sorely lacked that this season, with both Gavin Bazunu and Alex McCarthy looking uncertain throughout the early stages of the campaign.

This doubt feeds through into the rest of the team, creating a nervous attitude among the defence who can’t fully put their trust in either goalkeeper.

There may be an ideal solution for Southampton to quell these problems in January, but they must fend off fellow Championship outfit Leicester City.

James Trafford joined Manchester City in the summer and looked set to assume their number one position. However, after a few shaky performances to start the campaign, Champions League winner Gianluigi Donnarumma was brought in, relegating Trafford to the bench.

Southampton and Leicester City have both since been linked with a loan move for the young keeper in the January transfer window, alongside a handful of Premier League outfits.

Trafford is keen to play regular football with the 2026 World Cup coming up and doesn’t want his position on Man City’s bench to prevent Thomas Tuchel from selecting him in the England squad.

If there is a chance of Southampton getting this deal done, they can’t hesitate for one moment.

The 23-year-old was named as the PFA Championship Player of the Year for the 2024/25 campaign whilst contracted to Burnley, in a campaign that saw him amass 29 clean sheets in 45 matches whilst conceding only 16 goals.

This type of expertise would work wonders for Southampton, giving their defenders the peace of mind knowing that they had one of the division’s best goalkeepers behind them.

This in turn would allow the rest of the team to play with a new freedom, resulting in better performances and ultimately more points, which is exactly what the Saints need. However, Southampton may already have an automatic advantage when battling against the Foxes for Trafford's services.

Leicester City’s goalkeeping situation hasn’t been ideal this season, but perhaps not as drastic as Southampton’s.

Marti Cifuentes' side have only conceded 16 goals at the November international break stage in the season, which is five fewer than the Saints’ total of 21.

Despite some moments of concern, current starting goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk has looked capable on the whole and doesn’t evoke such feelings of uncertainty when compared to Southampton’s duo, and although he's currently dealing with a slight injury problem, Leicester can still call upon either Asmir Begovic or Francisco Vieites to start between the sticks.

Therefore, this already means that Leicester have less reason to pursue a deal for Trafford and the Manchester City man would have a much clearer route into the starting 11 at St. Mary’s.

Furthermore, the Foxes’ long-standing PSR concerns severely hampered their ability to commence business in the summer, when they didn’t pay a single transfer fee.

This means that if it came down to a battle of finances, Southampton would likely be able to better whatever Leicester were offering for Trafford’s services in relation to paying a larger percentage of his Man City wages.

Securing James Trafford loan will be tough for Southampton

Although Trafford would provide the perfect antidote to Southampton’s goalkeeping woes, it will be extremely tough to secure his services.

With multiple Premier League clubs also reportedly interested in a loan deal, it would be hard for the Saints to stand out during negotiations, especially when considering their low league position.

Perhaps the only thing the St. Mary’s outfit could place their hopes upon is Trafford wanting to return to a division he has excelled at in the past, in an attempt to regain some of the confidence lost by being dropped at City.

Apart from that, Southampton don’t have a lot to tempt the 23-year-old in with, which means that they may need to consider alternative methods to cure their issue in between the sticks.