Pierce Charles to leave Sheffield Wednesday? New Man City transfer twist emerges | OneFootball

Manchester City may be looking to re-sign Pierce Charles to offset a possible James Trafford departure

Despite their squad being gutted over the past year, Sheffield Wednesday were still able to keep their emerging star goalkeeper, Pierce Charles.

The Northern Irishman only managed 19 Championship appearances last season after a couple of shoulder injuries, the latter of which came in the opening days of 2026, which may have put off suitors from tabling a bid during the winter window.

Nevertheless, when fit, the 20-year-old had an admirable season. With the sheer number of chances that Wednesday gave up last year due to their vastly depleted and inexperienced team, Charles did a brilliant job of keeping scorelines low.

He averaged 4.26 saves per game and had multiple games where he made 11, the most by any keeper in a Championship game this season. Ironically, both of those came against Leicester City in their games in August and April.

If it was difficult to keep him throughout the last 12 months, it will be even harder this summer, with the Owls preparing for a League One return.

Manchester City enter Pierce Charles race

While Sheffield Wednesday may be able to try and tempt the Northern Irishman to stay at Hillsborough if Championship clubs come in for him, it could be impossible if Premier League sides register interest, especially those in the traditional 'big six.'

That's exactly what may happen this summer, unfortunately for the Owls, as talkSPORT is reporting that Manchester City are interested in signing Charles.

The 20-year-old was born in Manchester and came through the City academy before leaving aged 16 and penning a scholarship deal with Sheffield Wednesday, which then turned into a professional contract the year after.

Not only would Charles count towards Manchester City's homegrown quota for the new season, but he'd also be allowed to learn from one of the greatest goalkeepers in the game, currently, in Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Indeed, the report states that a possible move for their former academy man would be in preparation for the departure of James Trafford, another homegrown talent who arrived last summer as City's first choice, but was promptly bumped out of the way when the Italian became available.

Trafford is still regarded as one of the more exciting emerging goalkeepers, and kept 29 clean sheets in the 2024/25 Championship campaign with Burnley, so he will be expected to move away to become a true number one.

If the 23-year-old does, Charles may be set to take his place, and with how deep City go in cup competitions, he'd still be given time in between the sticks to impress the likely new head coach, Enzo Maresca, at the Etihad Stadium.

Pierce Charles may be wary of Manchester City summer switch

Ultimately, while Charles isn't yet at the level of Trafford, and a few years riding the bench at a club like Manchester City won't be too detrimental right now, the 20-year-old may be angling for a move to a club where game time is more of a luxury than it will be at the Etihad.

The Northern Irishman has been able to play plenty of senior games at such a young age and may likely look to continue that at a club that will be happy to take a chance on him based on his performances in the Championship this season.

The earlier talkSPORT report states that they expect Charles to be on his way this summer, irrespective of the City interest, so it'll be intriguing to see who can get their hands on someone highly regarded as one of the top EFL prospects, currently.

But, if his destination is, indeed, to a side where he'd be clearly the second choice, perhaps that excitement surrounding the 20-year-old would dim somewhat.