Manchester City expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany expects goalkeeper Ederson to leave the Etihad Stadium this summer and Porto's Diogo Costa to be signed as his replacement.
Ederson has established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in world football during his successful eight-year spell at the Etihad Stadium, where he has won six Premier League titles and three Golden Gloves.
However, journalist Fabrizio Romano have claimed that there is a 'concrete' chance the 31-year-old will leave Man City this summer, with clubs in Saudi Arabia ready to reignite their interest in the Brazilian after failing to sign him last summer.
McInerney believes that Ederson's focus has "shifted elsewhere" and he is not surprised that the goalkeeper is ready to pursue a fresh challenge at this stage of his career.
Speaking to Sports Mole, McInerney said: "At times this season, Ederson's look like his head's not fully there. Some moments of excellence and some good form, but occasionally [there have been] big moments where he's switched off.
"I think the start of the season in particular was very evident that he was a little bit unhappy, that he'd not got his move to Saudi. I think there's also an element of [Ederson wanting] a new challenge. I think Ederson's focus has shifted elsewhere.
"He's been here since 2017, it's an awful long time for anyone. I think at his age, I don't blame him if he wants to chase that big final payday. A few years in Saudi will get him generational wealth, it'd be an awful lot of money out there. I think there's only so far he can go at City."
Man City 'working on finalising deal' to sign Costa as Ederson replacement
Man City have recently been strongly linked with a big-money move for Portugal international Costa, who has allegedly given the green light to join Pep Guardiola's side this summer.
New sporting director Hugo Viana is said to be working on finalising a deal for the 25-year-old, who has emerged as a priority target and has been reassured by both Guardiola and City goalkeeping coach Xabier Mancisidor that he will become the club's new first-choice goalkeeper next season.
The player's agent Jorge Mendes is also understood to be 'pushing to seal the deal' and it is thought that Porto would consider offers around the £50m mark - a figure which would represent a record transfer for a goalkeeper for Man City if they were to lure him to the Etihad.
"I think the Diogo Costa links are not going away," said McInerney. "They make an awful lot of sense given Hugo Viana's ties to Portugal and Jorge Mendes has clearly got excellent communication with Manchester City as so many of his clients, especially Bernardo Silva, play for City.
"Diogo Costa seems to be a smart signing. By all accounts he's not had his best season, but he's really good on the ball, he's an excellent shot-stopper... he's one of the most highly-rated young goalkeepers in Europe for a reason.
"We all saw the three penalty saves in a row (for Portugal at Euro 2024), [but] we also saw the mistake against Man United (in this season's Europa League), so this sort of ebbs and flows there.
"But I don't think you're going to be courted by Manchester City for this long... without having talent and it feels very obvious to me, regardless of what any of us think, this is going to happen.
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Costa "almost certain" to complete record goalkeeper transfer to Man City
"This feels almost certain to be a record (transfer) for City for a goalkeeper, an awful lot of money, but in this market every player is a £50m pound player these days.
"I expect this to happen. I expect Ederson to move on and City to get £15m-£20m, something like that for him. I wish some of these things would happen before the end of the season, so we could say goodbye to them because Ederson's a club legend.
"I do feel where we're at right now with the obvious separation from the treble era, wanting to move on, I think that expands across the whole pitch not just midfielders and so on, I think the keeper as well.
"I think Ederson, as soon as your head's turned elsewhere, I think that's when you think about letting the player go and it's very obvious to me that Ederson wanted to go last year.
"Let him go. If he's not there fully, you want everyone who wants to be 100% there because at this elite level, just even just being 10% out the door, you lose so much edge. I think we've seen that this year to an extent."
If reports are to be believed, Man City are ahead of clubs including Manchester United and Chelsea in the race to sign Costa, who has been tipped by McInerney to seamlessly replace Ederson in Guardiola's team, something that could be 'feared' by rivals clubs next season.
Asked if City signing a player of Costa's calibre would send out a statement to rivals clubs, McInerney said: "It's huge. It's more a statement that we're not going anywhere, that we are willing to reinvest and build another great side.
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Man City's rivals "will fear" Costa arrival at Etihad
"United spent £50m on [Andre] Onana, it's not gone particularly well. Chelsea could do with a great keeper, they haven't got one at all. They've been a shambles on that front. They spent around £70m on Kepa [Arrizabalaga] a few years back - the money for keepers is big these days.
[City pursuing Costa] shows that City are aggressive about rebuilding their squad. He's the right age, the right profile. You can tell he's ready to take the next step, from being very good potential, to hopefully great.
"I think goalkeepers rarely make a statement, they're not the most exciting signings, but I think the manner of the rebuild, he as one of many parts of the big picture, shows that City are clearly intent and aggressive on ensuring that this reign of dominance is not about to come to an end, that we will have a young side that can immediately compete at the top.
"I don't think City will notice much of a difference (if Ederson leaves). I think Costa will come in and there'll be a very smooth transition between him and Ederson. Ederson's probably better on the ball, he's one-of-one in my opinion, but Diogo Costa is really good with his feet, he's probably even a slightly better shot-stopper than Ederson.
"I think, ultimately, it'll be a smooth transition and that to me is what I think rivals will fear. They'll want to see a bit of uncertainty, they'll want to see a drop-off (from City), but I think he'll come in and slot right in seamlessly. I think that will be the biggest benefit and maybe the biggest message to send to everyone else."
McInerney has also shared his thoughts on how the potential arrival of Costa could impact the future of Stefan Ortega and whether he remains at Man City as a number two goalkeeper, or he opts to leave in search of regular first-team football, with a return to his native Germany having previously been mooted.
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.
Oliver Thomas
