Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has told the club’s official website that he thinks Zack Steffen can now really challenge Ederson at the Etihad Stadium.
Steffen was called in for a first Premier League start last week, as he started against Chelsea with Ederson unavailable.
The American came so close to keeping a clean sheet, but Chelsea did score late on in a 3-1 City win, and Steffen did then keep a clean sheet in the 2-0 win over Manchester United on Wednesday.
Steffen is expected to start once again today, with City in FA Cup action against Championship side Birmingham City – an ideal chance for him to play again.
Steffen joined City from Columbus Crew in 2019, and spent last season on loan at Fortuna Dusseldorf before starting his City career.
He is now second-choice stopper at City following Claudio Bravo’s exit, but few really would have really expected him to push Ederson.
Ederson, a £35million signing from Benfica in 2017, has rarely had quality competition since arriving at City, but Guardiola seemingly thinks he does now.
Guardiola has suggested that Ederson is now under pressure from Steffen, truly believing that the 25-year-old can fight for first-team football, claiming that he played ‘brilliantly’ at Chelsea and United.
“He can fight for No.1,” said Guardiola. “He can put pressure on Eddie, but Eddie is the No.1 in this position right now. If he performs well, he stays No.1. But we cannot forget he [Steffen] played at Stamford Bridge and Old Trafford and solved all the situations he faced brilliantly,” he added.
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