PSG's Gianluigi Donnarumma celebrates a goal against Real Madrid at the Club World Cup

By the time the Premier League season kicks off on August 15th, it will only have been 33 days since the conclusion of the Club World Cup final in the United States. Effectively just one month from the end of the 2024/25 campaign.

Some players have barely had time to take a summer holiday before they're thrust back into the rigours of another gruelling season. One which will end with yet another tournament in the States - the 2026 World Cup.

For the elite players, there really is no rest whatsoever these days, so some teams that didn't qualify for the CWC, such as Barcelona, might consider that a Godsend in hindsight.

Come the business end of the 2025/25 campaign, the Blaugranes should find that they're much fresher than some of their opponents as a result.

One player who was in the newly revamped CWC right until the final minute of the final game was giant0PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Gianluigi Donnarumma's Stats vs Real Madrid in the Club World Cup

Although the Italian ultimately ended up on the losing side, he can still be pleased with his overall contribution during the tournament.

The wheel turns quickly in football, of course, and no sooner had that competition finished than the small matter of the custodian's contract was front and centre.

That's because Donnarumma is out of contract at the end of the forthcoming campaign, and has apparently refused all offers of a new one with the Parisiens, as it's understood they want him to take a pay cut on his reported €244,808 per week salary (3213k).

As a result, it appears that Manchester United are exploring the option of bringing the Italian on board at Old Trafford.

Though they have no European football whatsoever to offer the keeper, it's clear that manager Ruben Amorim really doesn't rate Andre Onana and is actively looking for a replacement.

One of the issues that could stall any deal before negotiations become more serious is that the Cameroonian is only on 3120,000 per week with the Red Devils, and if Donnarumma is baulking on taking a pay cut from over 3100,000 p/w more than that, there's a clear roadblock straight ahead.

Andre Onana's Pass Map in the Premier League (2024/25)

Assuming that initial enquiries are favourable with a willingness from all parties to try and navigate through the minefield in order to construct a deal, Amorim will need to be at his persuasive best to have Donnarumma even consider Old Trafford as his next destination.

Long thought to be one of the best goalkeepers in the world, the Italian made 56 saves across the domestic competitions in France during 2024/25, with a healthy save percentage of 66.2% in Ligue 1 and 100% in the French Champions' Trophy.

Perhaps surprisingly, Onana had a slightly higher save percentage of 66.9%, and given that he made 90 saves in the Premier League alone, that's an impressive statistic when compared like-for-like with his potential replacement.

Just five punches clear from the PSG man is a lot less than the 13 from Onana, who also dropped the ball on two other occasions.

Both keepers have an identical 100% record when it comes to keeper sweepings, though once again it's the Man United custodian who can claim the honours with 10 perfectly executed, two more than Donnarumma.

Gianluigi Donnarumma's Touch Map in Ligue 1 (2024/25)

A major difference can be seen in terms of goals conceded, and given PSG romped to another league title whilst the Red Devils languished in the bottom half of the English top-flight, that's no real surprise. Onana's 44 conceded is therefore way more than Donnarumma's 25.

Successful goal kicks might not, on the face of it, be something that supporters give much thought to, but when one considers that an accurate kick out can often be the catalyst to a goalscoring move, the completion of the same is vital.

There's no contest whatsoever here as the Italian successfully delivered an astonishing 78 from 92 goal kicks attempted. Onana managed just 74 from 150.

Arguably, the other overriding issues that are likely to see the current United keeper dumped at the earliest possible opportunity are his penchant for making glaring errors and the lack of confidence he gives to what is a brittle Red Devils back line.

Donnarumma's presence is obvious because of his size, but it is the confidence with which he claims crosses, gathers shots and stares down opponents in one-on-ones that elevate him above his contemporaries.

If United's interest has arrived too late to get what's going to be a difficult deal over the line, Amorim is then left to choose between Onana and Altay Bayindir for the jersey.

In a World Cup year, the latter may yet want to leave the Theatre of Dreams to fulfil his destiny of representing his country (Turkey) in the tournament next summer - and that could give United a real headache.

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