Following the fuss and bother that the media made regarding Bravo’s arrival at City and his subsequent difficulties in front of goal, it has been noticeable just how shy they have been to praise the new goal keeping arrival at City this season.
The 24 year old Brazilian Ederson Moraes arrived at City amongst much fanfare concerning the size of the fee paid for him and focusing less on his actual goal keeping ability. Suffice to say that City fans have seen enough of the young man so far this season to feel that the money was well spent and that we may have found a keeper who can truly establish himself in the long line of great keepers to grace the City’s team – Trautman; Swift; Corrigan.
We were treated in midweek once again not only to his shot stopping abilities but also to his skill in distributing the ball. Never one to dawdle on the ball he can make a first time pass to a team mate including ones in tight spaces; is quick to throw the ball out when appropriate without waiting for opposing defensive lines to form up (Sané was the recipient of one of these and it led directly to City threatening the opposition goal and being awarded a penalty (albeit rather fortuitously) ; and his party piece – the long, flat kick directly to a forward in the opposing half of the field. Sergio Aguero was the recipient on Tuesday in the second half against Shakhtar – he was found with the sort of unerring accuracy that seemed to constantly and frustratingly elude Joe Hart.
Check out those passes here:-
http://www.planetfootball.com/videos/watch-edersons-incredible-dist…
Could it be perhaps that the media, so keen to highlight the ‘exclusion’ of ‘England’s No 1’ from City (bearing in mind that this was the same player they eviscerated during England’s ill-fated Euro 2016 campaign), are somewhat on shakier ground now that they are faced with these statistics:–
Pass Success % (courtesy of Whoscored.com)
Ederson CL 96.7% PL 84.2% Av 87.3%
De Gea CL 47.8% PL 61.6% Av 58.1%
Courtois CL 68.4% PL 66.5% Av 67%
Cech CL N/A PL 68.3% Av 68.3%
Lloris CL 53.2& PL 67.9% Av 64.3%
And to complete the picture…..
Hart CL N/A PL 47.9%
These figures may go some way to explaining why Guradiola was so keen on having a goal keeper who is ‘comfortable on the ball’ (TM the media) but perhasp also why the matter has remained low key since Ederson’s arrival. In fact they have hardly mentioned him at all other than his temerity to leave his 18 yard box and wilfully headbutt the studs on Sadio Mane’s right boot.
Personally I would be rather pleased if this young man continues to go about his business w
quietly and keeps a low profile – not least because if he’s out of the limelight it probably means the ball isn’t getting too close to him in a dangerous way
Read more: https://manchestercity.vitalfootball.co.uk/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=34108&posts=1#ixzz4tyhpkKdx
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