James Trafford facing D-Day at Man City as Newcastle wait for update

Newcastle United remain interested in Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford and could launch a third attempt to sign the England star.

Manchester City activated their buy-back clause to bring Trafford home from Burnley last summer, promising the young stopper he'd be a regular starter.

However, shortly after Trafford returned to the Etihad, Pep Guardiola swooped for Gianluigi Donarumma and Trafford was immediately relegated down the pecking order. It was a move that infuriated the 23-year-old, and it's thought that he'll be seeking an exit this summer as he looks for regular football in order to stake a claim to be England's number 1.

Pep Guardiola stepped down as Man City manager, and they will now be headed up by Enzo Maresca, who is expected to let Trafford know in the next few days where he stands.

Trafford is waiting for an update on his future

It's unlikely that Maresca is going to prefer Trafford to Donarumma, so it's highly likely that Trafford will be on the market.

The Chronicle expects that a deal for Trafford would likely set Newcastle back anywhere between £35m-£45m, which would almost certainly spell the end of Nick Pope's time on Tyneside.

When Ewen Jaouen signed earlier this summer, he was told he'd be backup to whoever is first-choice, so should Trafford come in, that leaves Nick Pope in an awkward position.

Pope has just one year left on his contract and is being tracked by Leeds United and Ipswich Town, so it's looking very likely he'll leave.

Newcastle could still find it hard to land James Trafford

The Magpies will face plenty of competition for Trafford, however, with Brighton, Aston Villa and Juventus all circling. That could make things very difficult for Newcastle.

Although they also have Brighton's Bart Verbruggen and Lens' Robin Risser on their list, too, so if Trafford were to go to Brighton, that could open the door for Bart Verbruggen, who made some unbelievable saves for the Netherlands last night as they were sent home from the World Cup by Morocco after a penalty shootout.

There's not likely to be any movement on Trafford until England's involvement at the World Cup is over.