Man City have reportedly all-but sealed the signing of Zack Steffen from Columbus Crew as Pep Guardiola looks to have bolstered his goalkeeping options in January.
The reigning Premier League champions have Ederson as first-choice currently, but beyond the Brazilian international, Claudio Bravo is their only experienced alternative in that department.
With that in mind, it seems like a sensible decision from Guardiola and the club to bolster that area of the squad, and according to Goal.com, it’s Steffen who is seen as a long-term solution as a £6m move in January is said to be done while he’ll be sent out on loan immediately.
It’s a smart move from City if that’s the case, as although it’s noted that UK work permit issues could force them into that decision, it will also give Steffen an opportunity to continue to play regularly and adapt to moving to Europe.
While it’s difficult to see anyone displacing Ederson in Guardiola’s starting line-up in the more immediate future, Steffen could be knocking on the door and pushing the 25-year-old in the future.
For now though, it seems as though he will be snapped up and loaned out, but given his shot-stopping abilities as well as his composure and quality in distributing out from the back, he seems like a good fit for Guardiola’s style of play and so evidently they’ve done their homework.
In turn, he’ll undoubtedly relish the opportunity to work with the Spanish tactician, but ultimately his first priority will be to impress on loan to ensure that Man City decide to eventually keep him at the Etihad, provided that he is officially unveiled in the coming weeks.
