James Trafford must have dreamt for many years of making his debut at the Etihad Stadium after growing up at the club but when it finally came it was the stuff of nightmares. The goalkeeper made two big mistakes and cost his side a 2-0 defeat at home to Tottenham, completely deflating all the optimism after their crushing opening-day bashing of Wolves.
City made a dominant start, with Omar Marmoush taking the initiative with some very bright play down the left wing. He poked wide of the far post and forced three saves from Guglielmo Vicario but Spurs struck first through a clever break beginning in their area. The move saw Richarlison chase a knock-down and play the perfect cut-back for Brennan Johnson to hit home first time and although the goal was initially flagged offside, it was then awarded by VAR and, from there, Tottenham continued to unsettle their hosts on the break, and especially Trafford.
The goalkeeper arrived late to a challenge with Mohammed Kudus but escaped without giving away a foul or, thankfully for him, a red card. But things got far worse from the unlikely scenario of a City goal-kick, which they decided to play short. Trafford took a pass from Dias and tried to play in Nico Gonzalez but he was robbed by Pape Matar Sarr and it led to a scramble in the area, allowing Joao Palhinha to slam the loose ball in.
City barely knew what hit them and Spurs dominated most of the second half. Pep Guardiola was so desperate he put on Rodri despite warning of the dangers of bringing him back too soon. It made little difference as Bernardo Silva's shot off the bar was the closest they came to finding a way back.
.jpg "Man City player ratings vs Tottenham: Get Gianluigi Donnarumma's agent on the phone! Jittery James Trafford's glaring error hurts hosts as Erling Haaland fluffs his lines - Goal.com")
