Manchester City reportedly wanted Arsenal’s Bernd Leno before signing Ederson

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Manchester City had Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno in their sights before he moved to north London from Bayer Leverkusen.

As per Pep’s City: The Making of a Superteam, serialised in the Daily Mail, £100,000-a-week (Spotrac) Leno was on the radar before they plumped for signing Ederson for £35 million in 2017 (BBC).

The book relayed that Txiki Begiristain said of the pair: “They both fitted the bill. One was more expensive to buy, the other required a higher salary. I left it up to the coaches to choose.”

Chief executive Ferran Soriano also said: “(Ederson is) cheap at the price,” and it is difficult to argue. Given the way the goalkeeper market has exploded since then, the Brazilian would be worth far more than £35 million now.

TBR’s View – Would Leno have cut the mustard at Manchester City?

Leno has been a good signing for Arsenal without ever really inspiring the kind of confidence Ederson has with the champions, where his distribution and 1v1 saves have put him among the best in the world.

The German still appears to be on at least the rung below Ederson, but would he have blossomed more quickly in a better side, with a clear identity?

Or would he have been exposed like Claudio Bravo? It’s pure conjecture, but perhaps Leno regrets that City didn’t opt for him back in 2017.