Pep Guardiola has confirmed that James Trafford will start in goal for Manchester City against Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday. The decision ends any speculation over whether the 23-year-old or Gianluigi Donnarumma would feature at Wembley.
Trafford, who joined City from Burnley for £30 million last July, has been limited to domestic cup appearances this season after Donnarumma's arrival from Paris Saint-Germain for £26 million on Deadline Day. The Italian has been City's first-choice goalkeeper in the Premier League and Champions League, with Trafford making only four appearances across those competitions.
Asked at Friday's pre-match press conference if Trafford would start the final, Guardiola replied: “Yep.” When pressed on the significance for the player, he added: “For the team, it's a big moment.” Guardiola also expressed satisfaction with Trafford's attitude despite the goalkeeper's public admission that being second choice “wasn't what he expected.”
Trafford was earlier named in Thomas Tuchel's 35-man England squad for pre-World Cup friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, one of five goalkeepers selected alongside Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, Aaron Ramsdale and Jason Steele.
