Scouting Manchester City Transfer Target Marc-Andre ter Stegen

Joe Hart’s performances for Manchester City last season were indicative of a goalkeeper still improving.

Hart is 29, has played close to 350 games for City and has won 63 caps for England. During his time at the Etihad Stadium, he has won two Premier League titles and an FA Cup, winning the Golden Gloves award on four occasions.

It’s an impressive record. The £100,000 City paid Shrewsbury Town for his services back in 2006 after a recommendation from the club’s then-goalkeeping coach Tim Flowers has proved to be a shrewd investment.

And he continues to make incremental adjustments that up his performance level. His distribution remains a concern, and he can still drop the odd glaring error, but City have a goalkeeper who bailed them out on a number of occasions thanks to his wonderful shot-stopping capabilities and his brilliant ability to spread himself at the feet of forwards when they are bearing down on goal.

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However, the rumours persist that Pep Guardiola’s desire to revolutionise City’s style will lead him to sign a new goalkeeper, one comfortable with the ball at his feet who can start attacks and play as an auxiliary outfield player.

To traditional followers of English football, it’s an odd idea. Goalkeepers who stop the ball going into the net are what a team needs, and Hart does that better than most—but for the more forward-thinking, a goalkeeper’s remit has broadened, and they can offer more than just steady hands.

Guardiola had Victor Valdes at Barcelona and Manuel Neuer at Bayern Munich. Both will sweep up danger and join in with passing in deep areas, helping to keep possession, start attacks and set the tone for the team’s possession-based style.

In football, any advantage, no matter how small, can be crucial—and having a goalkeeper participate in what goes on in outfield play has so often proved to be that something extra that has tipped a game in Guardiola’s favour. Valdes and Neuer gave Guardiola’s side an advantage—something of an 11th outfield player on the pitch.

A goalkeeper of that ilk is Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Barcelona’s 24-year-old German goalkeeper plays in the cup competitions but is widely seen as second in command to Claudio Bravo, their first choice …

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