Manchester City are set to sign goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli from Marseille following James Trafford’s exit, talkSPORT understands.
Trafford became Leeds United’s highest-paid player after completing a club-record £40million move to Elland Road on Thursday.
He had struggled for minutes at City and was unable to displace Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal under Pep Guardiola.
So, the England international opted to move on and sign for their Premier League rivals.
And with Donnarumma expected to continue as Enzo Maresca’s No.1, City were left needing to bring in a replacement.
But just a day later, they’ve struck a deal with Marseille to bring in a new No.2 goalkeeper for a fee in the region of £2.5m.
Rulli is expected to sign a two-year contract at the club with the option for an additional year, talkSPORT understands.
He is set to fly for a medical ahead of the move to Manchester.
Immediate replacement
Man City have swooped in to get a deal done for Rulli instantly after losing their back-up in Trafford to Leeds.
And now, the 34-year-old is set to be Donnarumma’s understudy, arriving at City for what is actually his second stint.
He was signed by the club in 2016, but never played a game, leaving to return to his old side Real Sociedad almost straight away.
Rulli has spent the last two seasons with Marseille in France, starting 29 Ligue 1 games last campaign, keeping eight clean sheets.
3
The year prior, he started 34 games and kept five clean sheets.
Before joining Marseille in 2024, he spent a year in the Netherlands with Ajax, whom he joined from Spanish side Villarreal.
The goalkeeper had been in LaLiga for six years before that, having three different spells at Sociedad in his career.
Rulli started his career in Argentina with Estudiantes – and he’s picked up eight caps playing for his country since 2016.
World Cup winner
Despite only playing eight games for Argentina over the last decade, he has become a World Cup winner with his nation.
The veteran was part of the successful squad in 2022 as Lionel Messi finally got his hands on the Jules Rimet trophy in Qatar.
3
Rulli didn’t play a game at the tournament, but still managed to taste the success that so many players dream of.
He was also in the 26-man set-up for Argentina again this summer, but they were beaten in the World Cup final by Spain.
