Southampton told they have "no chance" of James Trafford loan - 37-year-old name-dropped as alternative | OneFootball

Trafford has already been linked with a January loan switch to the Saints, but is is a realistic likelihood?

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Despite the transfer window shutting for English clubs nearly a month ago now, some EFL sides are already looking ahead to January 2026 in a bid to strengthen their squads - and Southampton are said to be one of them.

The Saints have gotten off to a pretty rotten start to the 2025-26 Championship season, with the rot that set in during their dismal Premier League stint last year continuing into the current campaign.

Asides from a last-gasp turnaround win against 10-man Wrexham on the opening weekend of the season, Will Still's side have not recorded another success from their six league outings, with the latest showing being a 3-1 defeat at Hull City.

It's not the start to the season that Still would have imagined following his summer appointment, and one area that the club are reportedly looking to strengthen in the next transfer window is the goalkeeper position.

With last year's first-choice Aaron Ramsdale now at Newcastle United on loan, Republic of Ireland international Gavin Bazunu has resumed his role as Southampton's number one after a stint last season with Standard Liege in Belgium, although his time at St Mary's Stadium so far has been indifferent to say the least.

It cannot come as a surprise therefore that new goalkeepers are starting to be linked to the club, and TEAMtalk claim that Southampton, as well as Championship rivals Leicester, are eyeing up Man City goalkeeper James Trafford, should he be made available for loan in the second half of the season.

Southampton eye James Trafford, but ex-Saints goalkeeper name-dropped as alternative

Trafford, who was a star in Burnley's promotion from the Championship last season, secured a return to Man City in a bumper £31 million deal this summer, and he started the Premier League campaign as Pep Guardiola's first-choice, with Ederson - now a Fenerbahce player - on the way out.

With Gianluigi Donnarumma's arrival from PSG though, Trafford is back to being second in-command, and should he push for game-time, Southampton are said to be happy to bring him to the south coast.

And amid the club's links to Trafford ahead of the January transfer window in three months time though, FLW's Southampton fan pundit Martin Sanders believes that there's no real chance of the club landing the Englishman's services - although he did name-drop a former club favourite as a potential alternative.

"I'd be all over a goalkeeper if we can get one - Fraser Forster's another free agent at the moment, by the way," Martin told FLW.

"I would be looking at a potential goalkeeper, I don't think either of the two we've got our good enough, that's my honest opinion.

"Alex McCarthy made a mistake (versus Liverpool), Gavin Bazunu is struggling as well. We should've got a goalkeeper in the window when we let Ramsdale go, we brought a number three in instead of a goalkeeper that could push the other two.

"But oh my word James Trafford - he's never coming to Saints, but what a goalkeeper that would be. But yeah, we are really lacking in a decent goalkeeper. We have Ramsdale sat on the bench at Newcastle, it's unbelievable, isn't it?

"But yeah, I'd absolutely love to see that happen (Trafford to sign for Southampton)."

James Trafford would be a coup, but Fraser Forster/Southampton reunion wouldn't be worth it

Southampton do have the facilities to add a free agent to their squad should they wish to, but with three senior stoppers already on the books in Bazunu, McCarthy and summer signing George Long, it would be a shock if the free agent market was delved into in that way.

Forster has plenty of experience, but at the age of 37 now, his time as a professional is coming to its conclusion, and there's no real guarantee that he could offer anything better than Bazunu or McCarthy.

On the contrary, Trafford definitely would be a class above Southampton's current options, but it would be a shock if City were to loan him out in January not long after paying a significant eight-figure fee for his services.

Stefan Ortega of course is still at City though, so on the off chance that Guardiola and the City hierarchy were to let Trafford depart temporarily at the start of 2026, they may be well-covered - and Southampton could be a fine choice of club.