England U21s hero James Trafford has never even played in Premier League

James Trafford was in the news earlier this week, as fans scrambled to find out more information about the shot-stopper set for a £19million transfer – despite never playing a senior minute for his club.

Trafford, who plays for Manchester City, has never pulled on the Sky Blue for Pep Guardiola's side. And that's understandable, the young Englishman was never really going to unseat Ederson – despite earning admirers in the youth rankings.

Cole Palmer, who played with Trafford at City and England U21s, explained: "I first met him at under 12s. When he first came, everyone was thinking: 'Who's this kid?'. He came from Carlisle and as time went on everyone was looking at each other like: 'Wow'.

"I always say to him, even when we were little, that he is going to be world-class. I don't think everyone has seen it yet and this tournament he is showing it now. I already knew how good he was, and I am just glad everyone is seeing it."

READ MORE: James Trafford shows he's worth £19m transfer fee with incredible double save

Near Manchester, in Bolton, Trafford has been something of an open secret – having spent the last 18 months on loan at Bolton Wanderers.

However, football is still something his dad is getting his head around, with his family coming from farming, except for Trafford and one cousin: "He’s a dentist, and even that was a bit frowned upon. He should have been a farmer.

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"It was similar to me – my family didn’t really follow football and I still have to explain the offside rule to my dad.”

Trafford got his moment in the sunshine on Saturday evening. With England 1-0 up, in the U21 Euros final, Levi Colwill was deemed to have fouled Abel Ruiz. Ruiz picked the ball up, placed it on the spot, and he went left – Trafford went the same way.

The youngster popped back up, denied the follow-up, and watched the third effort fly over the bar. Trafford's heroics meant England had won the U21s Euros.

Trafford has been long since tipped for the top, and next season he will seemingly get his shot at the big time, with Burnley set to part ways with £19million for his services.

And it's an opportunity Trafford has been dreaming of, Trafford told the Daily Mail: "My long-term goal is playing in the Champions League and for England. If you want to be in the Champions League you've got to be in the top four teams in England."

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