Man City need at least four signings in five weeks after £40million move

Manchester City already had priorities in the summer transfer window but now must add another position

There are now less than five weeks remaining in the summer transfer window and while it isn’t time for Manchester City to panic there is a need for them to pick up the pace. The Premier League begins again on August 22 and there are still major incomings needed at the Etihad.

City went into the summer with midfield as their biggest priority, followed by right-back and a forward. They have added Elliot Anderson for a club record £116m but arguably still need to act in all areas – especially with the uncertainty over Rodri and several other midfielders.

The impending £40m sale of James Trafford to Leeds throws up another priority that cannot afford to be ignored. City won two cup competitions last season in part because they had the strongest pairing of goalkeepers in the league, and losing effectively a No.1 in Trafford is a serious blow to their hopes of going deep in four competitions.

While he may not have been ahead of Gianluigi Donnarumma in the pecking order, hence why he has gone after just one year, Trafford was a major strength for City in an awkward position that now needs replacing. Finding a goalkeeper who is good enough to compete for the jersey and be an able stand-in but doesn’t sulk at being No.2 is one of the most difficult roles in the squad to fill, and a good price is not a guarantee.

Hugo Viana’s search should be well under way, given Trafford has been fairly clear about his ambition to move since before the January transfer window opened. City resisted interest in him then but knew that they had to line up a new signing for the summer.

They have managed to work so far without any names on the shortlist getting out, yet as it stands it is yet another outstanding item on City’s transfer list for the summer. As bold as it was to bring in both Trafford and Donnarumma last summer, that has now created more work for Viana – not counting for any other players that could yet leave.

City are expecting business to pick up now the World Cup is over and players start returning from their holidays and the work is ongoing; negotiations for Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi continue and the pace is picking up in the search for a winger. A lot is left to do though if City are to sign the players they need to in the remaining five weeks of the window and Trafford’s departure will increase the number of new arrivals needed.