More than £80m has now been spent on Trafford in upfront transfer fees.
As part of his move to Leeds, City have secured a 20% sell-on clause and matching rights, meaning they can match any future bid and take first refusal on bringing him back.
Leeds manager Daniel Farke appears ready to pay a premium despite Trafford’s limited minutes at Manchester City last season, with both Karl Darlow and Illan Meslier leaving Elland Road this summer. Lucas Perri and Alex Cairns are still at the club, but Perri lost his spot to Darlow in the latter half of last season and did not play in the Premier League after a 4-3 defeat to Newcastle on 7 January.
Leeds are backing the upside of a young keeper best known for his Championship form with Burnley, where he conceded only 16 goals across 45 matches. Although he has just 32 top-flight appearances, former Clarets boss Scott Parker previously hailed his revival at Turf Moor before the switch to the Etihad. Parker even called him “world class,” with Trafford’s 29 clean sheets and 84.47% save rate pivotal to Burnley’s promotion to the Premier League for 2024-25.
Trafford came through City’s academy and had loan spells at Accrington Stanley and Bolton Wanderers before joining Burnley in 2023. He made 73 appearances for the Clarets before City triggered a buy-back clause last summer.