Being the goalkeeper in a Pep Guardiola team is about far more than claiming crosses and sharp saves.
Goalkeeping woes held Manchester City back, often hitting their Premier League betting chances, in the first year under Guardiola.
The signing of Ederson in 2017 was vital for how Guardiola wanted his team to defend.
Adept charging out of his area to wipe out balls in behind the defence, Ederson allowed City to push high up the pitch, and has frequently demonstrated his one-on-one ability, too.
In possession, he was just as important, operating as an extra outfield player at times, pinging passes across the pitch to stretch opposition defences.
It is no coincidence that City have been far clear in Premier League odds outright since the Brazilian arrived for what seemed a sizeable fee over half a decade ago.
Ederson Career Assists
According to Who Scored, Ederson has a grand total of five career assists, one of which was with Benfica. The other four have all been since he signed for Manchester City.
Ederson’s lone Champions League assist came in dramatic fashion.
A long ball played in behind reached Raheem Sterling in the final minutes of a 2018 group stage match against Schalke, which City had trailed 2-1 with five minutes to play.
Sterling’s last-gasp strike completed a spectacular late comeback, wrapping up a 3-2 win.
Ederson Premier League Assists
Ederson is joint-fourth among all goalkeepers with three Premier League assists.
Just three ‘keepers have more, with Paul Robinson leading the way on five ahead of David Seaman and Pepe Reina on four.
The Brazil international has notched an assist in every other Premier League season – he created a goal for Erling Haaland against Brighton in October 2022 after being credited with assists in 2018-19 and 2020-21.
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1st Premier League assist: Goal kick to Sergio Aguero vs Huddersfield, 19th August 2018
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2nd Premier League assist: Pass to Ilkay Gundogan vs Tottenham, 2nd February 2021
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3rd Premier League assist: Pass to Erling Haaland vs Brighton, 22nd October 2022
Could Ederson Play In Midfield?
Not content with ranking among the best goalkeepers in Premier League history, Ederson has spoken of his desire to play in midfield.
Speaking to FourFourTwo in 2018, he said, "When I played in the Benfica youth teams, they would always call me to play in midfield if someone was missing and I didn't ever embarrass myself.
"So, if necessary, I'm definitely up to the task. It wouldn't be easy, especially in the Premier League, but I think I could manage the challenge.
"There are so many good players in this team who are ahead of me. I was always comfortable with the ball at my feet, and this helps me during games. I think it's a natural talent.
"It's something I've been working on since I started out at Sao Paulo, and over time, I've tried to improve my skills. But even when I played in the local academy, I was trying to show off some ability with my feet. I actually scored several free-kicks.
"One of my coaches encouraged me to try it. In the beginning, I didn’t want to take any free-kicks but he pushed me to do it.
"Then I started scoring a few goals and everything changed. But I don’t do it any more. City have plenty of specialists in this area."
Perhaps Guardiola will allow Ederson to venture further into midfield in the coming seasons, giving him an opportunity to join the short list of goalkeepers to score in the Premier League.
How Ederson Moraes Learnt From Futsal
Brought up on the outskirts of São Paulo, Ederson’s ability with his feet goes back to his time playing futsal after being converted from left-back to goalkeeper.
Gilberto Lopes, organiser of the charity team Ederson played on, explained to The Guardian, "As he is left-footed, I started playing Ederson at left-back.
"He already had a powerful shot but he did not carry ginga [the rhythm] for dribbling, so I pulled him back to be a keeper. With the first shot he caught the ball without dropping it, and that was the beginning."
A childhood friend spoke of the role futsal played in Ederson becoming the all-round goalkeeping package.
"He used to play as a goleiro-linha [the so-called ‘fifth man’, a goalkeeper who joins the outfield players] to take advantage of his powerful shot.
"Due to that, our main tactic was to clear space so he could come from his box to shoot. He was so good with his feet he was challenging to become the top scorer."
Ederson Assists By Season
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2014-15 – 0 assists
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2015-16 – 0 assists
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2016-17 – 1 assist
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2017-18 – 0 assists
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2018-19 – 2 assists
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2019-20 – 0 assists
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2020-21 – 1 assist
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2021-22 – 0 assists
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2022-23 – 1 assist
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
