Claudio Bravo's first season at City was very inconsistent. He was bought by Guardiola in an attempt to find a keeper who was good with his feet, to be able to match the Spaniard's style of playing out of the back. He quickly decided that Joe Hart was surplus to requirements and shipped him out on loan to Torino within a few months of being manager.
Bravo was the replacement for Hart, however he didn't live up to the standards set by both his manager, and the fans. He kept just 5 clean sheets in 22 Premier League appearances, conceding 26 goals.
If you compare this to the goalie from the other side of Manchester, David De Gea kept 14 clean sheets in 35 appearances, conceding 29 goals. If you compare their stats to the amount of games each of them played last season, De Gea has done significantly better in his 35 matches than Bravo in his 22.
Man City stared off this transfer window by signing Ederson Moraes from Benfica for £39.4 million. He has been described as a young, athletic goalie with impressive spring and agility with the ability to come off of his line quickly. He played in 27 games, keeping 17 clean sheets last season. Although the Primeira Liga is not at the same level as the Premier League in England, Ederson 's clean sheet record is immensely better than that of Bravo.
However, sports journalist Gabriele Marcotti said, ' We’re not talking about somebody who’s necessarily considered a real A-list goalkeeper. So I think they have brought someone in who can challenge (Claudio) Bravo but perhaps not overwhelm him or indeed really threaten him.'
Although Bravo is prone to making errors, such as the one against Australia in the Confederations Cup, he is still a top goalkeeper who has said himself that he will stay and fight for his position at City.
To many people, he proved his ability against Portugal in the Confederations Cup on Wednesday as he made a number of good saves, taking his team to a penalty shootout where he saved all three of Portugals penalties.
It will be an interesting situation at Manchester City next year as they have a young promising goalkeeper in Ederson as well as an international proven goalkeeper in Bravo. To me, it is down to trust. Can Guardiola trust Bravo not to make silly mistakes that can cost City vital points.
In my opinion, Bravo should get another opportunity this season however if it is the same story then perhaps it is time for Ederson to step up. Nonetheless, Man City have a very solid team going into the 2017-18 season and everybody fully expects them to be up there fighting for the title come May.
Jack Antoniou
Whitgift School
