August 2015. AC Milan were playing Tottenham in a pre-season Audi Cup game at Munich’s Allianz Arena. Watching on was Bayern Munich head coach Pep Guardiola.
After the game, Guardiola approached someone who caught his eye – a 16-year-old goalkeeper who came on at half-time called Gianluigi Donnarumma.
“He played out the back a lot in that game,” recalls Alfredo Magni – AC Milan’s goalkeeper coach at the time – to Sky Sports. “He was very supportive to the team by getting involved in many pieces of play.
“And Guardiola, at the end of the game, came up to congratulate him for his inclination to play out.”
A decade later, Guardiola has approached Donnarumma in a different manner. The Manchester City manager has called on the Italian goalkeeper to become his No 1. But this time he is not a young prodigy. He has now developed into one of the best goalkeepers in the world, if not the standalone best.
City had Ederson in their squad – a title and treble-winning goalkeeper. They also spent £27m for James Trafford, who has the potential to become City and England’s No 1 for a generation or two.
But City’s late move for Donnarumma this summer proves one simple thing: when someone of his stature becomes available, you just get him. No matter the context.
Donnarumma is a Champions League winner with PSG
This is a European Championship winner with Italy. A current Champions League winner. And not just a champion by name, but one very much central to those successes.
In Italy’s Euro 2021 success, he saved three penalties across two shoot-outs in the semi-final and final victories over Spain and England respectively – and was subsequently named the player of the tournament.
Even this year, while Paris Saint-Germain’s attacking stars lit up the Champions League, particularly in the 5-0 final win over Inter, it is worth remembering Donnarumma’s five, crucial stops across both semi-final legs against Arsenal.
Donnarumma made a handful of world-class saves to deny Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final
A player at the top of his game in his prime years, a key part of Donnarumma’s aura is his ‘been there, done that’ experience. As well as those big moments delivered on the grandest stage, it is worth noting he has played in Europe’s top five leagues for 10 years – and he is still only 26.
His development started in December 2014 when Magni spotted him playing in AC Milan’s academy as a 14-year-old. He was such a big talent that Milan’s goalkeeper coach personally approached owners Silvio Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani for permission to promote him to the first team.
“Anyone who saw him would notice he had something special,” he says. “He began a path that involved technique, but more so the physical aspect of his game.
“As well as the technical side of things, I wanted him to become a goalkeeper that even saved the shots that were far away from him and out of reach, so he wouldn’t do just the bare minimum and only think about not making mistakes.
Donnarumma’s first senior goalkeeper coach was Alfredo Magni (left)
“But the important thing that we worked on him with, in my opinion, was injury prevention, the support and reinforcement of the body, and he has never picked up injuries in his career. And that started when he was 14, and developed even more at 18. He worked a lot on this aspect.”
While many have pointed out that Donnarumma’s shot-stopping is his best trait, Magni disagrees.
“It’s his attitude to learn and make the coach’s requests happen,” he says. “His greatest quality – in addition to his physicality, is the talent to learn things and to apply what is asked of him on the pitch.
“Attitude is one thing, but traits are another. If someone has the attitude to do something, they put it into those traits. This is his greatest quality.
Donnarumma’s main attribute is his ability to learn, says Magni
“He is geared to learning, which is part of his talent. When you face difficulties, you react in order to overcome the problems. He is really talented at this.”
It is an important talking point when it comes to how Donnarumma fits in at Manchester City. Can he become the goalkeeper that Man City want?
Having a goalkeeper who is not primed to Guardiola’s demands has already been noted this season in James Trafford’s high-profile mistake during City’s 2-0 home defeat to Spurs – and there are already concerns about Donnarumma’s own technical style.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
New Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford had a home debut to forget, while first-choice stopper Ederson watched on from the bench
“His distribution is not good enough for a Guardiola team,” said French football expert Julien Laurens to Sky Sports News this summer. So is he still that goalkeeper who played out from the back so fearlessly as a 16-year-old under Guardiola’s gaze?
“It’s not that he cannot play with his feet, but it hasn’t been put forward to him by the coaches in the way that he can do it,” says Magni.
And that adaptability and desire to learn will come useful in this City set-up. While Guardiola likes his team to play out from the back with short passes to the defenders, there is also an importance of going long – as Ederson has done so often in the past.
After all, the Brazilian registered seven assists in his Premier League career via those long balls, four of them coming last season.
As Magni puts it: “It’s all on a cognitive level: playing out the back, or going long, where you’re kicking the ball far away, quickly, so that a numerical superiority materialises.
“Any request of the coach, playing out of the back or going longer, Donnarumma has the ability to work with the requests of the coach.
“And I can guarantee that he has the aptitude to fulfil Guardiola’s requests – in terms of his talent and aptitude.”
Another criticism Donnarumma has faced is his inability to claim crosses. It contributed to PSG conceding 31 per cent of last season’s goals from set-pieces. “He doesn’t like it,” said Laurens. “If there is one league in the world where you have to be brave like that, it’s the Premier League.”
Donnarumma’s record of collecting crosses has been questioned
Again, those criticisms are a surprise – given another big strength is his reading of the game – having worked under some big names in football. Luis Enrique, Mauricio Pochettino, Filippo Inzaghi and Gennaro Gattuso to name a few.
“I know this for sure, Gianluigi is a very attentive person. He knows the game,” says Magni. “Despite being 26 years old, he’s had a lot of coaches. He’s had the chance to really know the game and communicate it in the right way.
“He’s someone who contributes a lot – not just when it comes to covering the goal but also when it comes to covering the space when the ball is far away. That’s where the goalkeeper needs to communicate to the defender. He runs, he gets up, he’s there.”
With the likes of Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne departing City this summer, there is the need for experienced players on the highest level. Donnarumma fits the bill – but whether he fits stylistically is still up in the air.
