James Trafford says regular football drove Leeds move after difficult City season

James Trafford has explained that his summer move to Leeds United was driven by a need to play regularly after a difficult season at Manchester City. In an interview reported by BBC Sport on Saturday, the England goalkeeper said spending much of the previous campaign out of the Premier League starting line-up had affected his wellbeing and made a change necessary.

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City brought their academy graduate back from Burnley in July 2025, but signed Gianluigi Donnarumma from Paris St-Germain less than six weeks later. Trafford started City's opening three league games before the Italy international became first choice. Across the remaining 35 league fixtures, Trafford made only one more start, according to the BBC's account of his season.

Speaking on Football Daily's The Football Interview, Trafford described turning to his parents, partner and friends to discuss the frustration. The 24-year-old said playing each week was important both to feeling better and to continuing his development. He linked the decision to leave with his longer-term ambitions, explaining that he wanted regular opportunities to progress towards the goals he had set for his career.

Trafford nevertheless rejected the idea that his final City season had been entirely disappointing. He started both the League Cup and FA Cup finals at Wembley as the club won those competitions. Looking back, he said the experience had helped him learn and improve, even though there had been periods when he felt low and questioned his decisions.

His circumstances have changed at Leeds, whom he joined after the World Cup in a deal the BBC reported could reach £45 million, a record for a British goalkeeper. Trafford has started all nine of their Premier League matches this season and kept three clean sheets. Daniel Farke's team had conceded eight goals, with only Brighton and Arsenal allowing fewer, and were 12th before the weekend's fixtures, two points outside the European places.

Trafford also remains focused on becoming England's first-choice goalkeeper. He was in Thomas Tuchel's squad at the 2026 World Cup without making an appearance, but said he understood his role and valued the experience. At Leeds, he expressed an ambition to help the club return to European competition while stressing the importance of continuing to improve.