Ederson Moraes – Fantasy Football Potential

Twelve months ago the new Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola brought in Barcelona goalkeeper Claudio Bravo after loaning the English number one Joe Hart to Torino. The reason for this move was because of the Chilean’s superior ball-playing abilities, but this decision backfired as Bravo failed to settle in the team and was eventually benched by Pep as he chose to play the Argentinian Willy Caballero instead.

After the 2016/17 trophy-less season Man City released Caballero and have now brought in Benfica goalkeeper, Ederson Moraes for a record fee of £35 million. At 6’2, Ederson is considered as an ideal goalkeeper for Pep Guardiola’s project at Man City. Whilst having an impressive season at Benfica, Ederson is still uncapped for Brazil at senior level, but he was named in the squad for their friendlies against Argentina and Australia back in June.

Here’s what he said about joining Man City:

“I have always had the dream to play in English football and now I’m going to make it true.”

“Manchester City has an amazing squad. Next season, we will have to be focused to achieve the goal of winning trophies.”

Fantasy football potential:

Ederson Moraes has been brought into the Man City team as the potential number one keeper, replacing both Claudio Bravo and Willy Caballero. Pep likes his keepers to be confident with the ball at their feet and Moraes is certainly one that is, giving City the ability to play out from the back.

In 2016/17 season Man City were only able to keep 11 clean sheets, meanwhile the Brazilian was exceptional in the Portuguese league with Benfica, starting 27 matches and keeping 17 clean sheets. Ederson managed to make 1.81 saves per game compared to Claudio Bravo’s 1.23 ,David De Gea’s 1.69 and Thibaut Courtis’s 1.61. This makes brilliant reading for fantasy managers with the potential of save points.

The Brazilian also has a distribution success of 72% which was bettered by Bravo who has 75%. Ederson Moraes will likely come in around 5.0m to 5.5m, which could be brilliant value for a Man City keeper.

On a side note it may be worth monitoring the 23 year old in the pre-season, with Pep Guardiola keen to strengthen the other defensive departments, with the potential of other additions at the back. That said, Ederson is one of the best young keepers in the world, with fantastic shot-stopping and great distribution skills, which will make him a perfect long term addition for Man City.

If you have enjoyed this early view of the fantasy potential of those moving teams this transfer window, be sure to check the others here.

Written by Vysakh (@VYSAKH_LFC)

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