Former Eintracht Frankfurt goalkeeper and captain Kevin Trapp has joined Paris Saint-Germain today (after weeks of rumors) for around €10m, per ESPNFC. Other sources pin the fee at €9.5m. A bargain signing for the club, and a smart one, if you look at Trapp’s undoubted potential—though former PSG man Gregory Coupet is right when he says our current overloading of the position could cause problems.
It’s no secret that Salvatore Sirigu had a shaky season last year. Despite spending four years in Paris, the Italian international hasn’t grown out of his flaws as well as Laurent Blanc and supporters would have liked. Even at a towering 6’4”, Sirigu lacks the confidence in the air to do anything but punch the ball. While he holds the current consecutive clean sheet record, last season’s defensive troubles put the Italian’s skills to the test and he was exposed.
Former PSG man Bernard Lama, often considered the club’s greatest keeper of all time, has long berated the Italian for his weaknesses in goal, saying there’s much more to goalkeeping than simply shot-stopping. Some PSG fans, myself included, are inclined to agree with him, considering that Nicholas Douchez showed none of these weaknesses last season and he arguably deserves a chance as the No.1 when Sirigu’s form collapses. Now with Trapp at the club, 35-year-old Douchez sees himself move down in the pecking order, and he doesn’t deserve that after his fine form last season.
And that’s without the question of Alphonse Areola, a youth product from our own academy that led France to U-20 World Cup glory back in 2013, saving two Uruguayan penalties in the final. The 22-year-old could already be starting for the Philippines, but has enough faith in his talent to wait for France to give him his chance in the senior team. He had a very successful spell as Bastia’s No.1 last season and will be doing the same on loan at Villareal, whose first-choice keeper is out for most of the season with an injury. He’ll also get his first taste of European competition there. What does it mean for him to come back and find himself the fourth-choice keeper?
#Roma, si insiste per #Sirigu: le opzioni per la porta http://t.co/maQN9BGv3T
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) July 7, 2015
The ideal solution in my mind is to offload Sirigu. The ever-reliable Gianluca Di Marzio reports that Roma have a very serious interest in the Italian international, and Kevin Trapp—who was third in the Bundesliga in saves per game, despite Frankfurt’s very leaky defense—looks to have the immediate quality to start for us. It would keep Douchez at the club, save Areola from his almost certain departure, and we’d certainly recoup the paltry €4m that we spent on the Italian. It’d be a win-win for both parties, as Roma have been desperate for quality in goal.
Follow Dave on Twitter @3Tscroat
