Did PSG make a key mistake in the summer transfer window with Donnarumma?

Put the names of Gianluigi Donnarumma and Lucas Chevalier into a player comparison app and the results make for a tough read for any Paris Saint Germain fans. The Italian giant, so ignominiously sold by PSG this summer, just a few months after he played such an important role in leading them to their first ever Champions League, looks statistically dominant compared to his de facto replacement, young French goalkeeper Chevalier, signed from Lille.

Donnarumma has an impressive save percentage of 90% at his new club Manchester City, far better than Chevalier’s disappointing 33%. An even more damning statistic? Donnarumma has an extremely high percentage of aerial duels won, up at 94.7%. Chevalier’s? A woeful 14% (exacerbated by his constant inability to catch crosses and to dominate his box). This goalkeeping conundrum represents perhaps the single biggest transfer decision that Luis Enrique has made during his time at PSG, and for now, statistically at least, it doesn’t seem to be making any sense.

It is clear to see why Donnarumma was sold. In fairness to Enrique, life wasn’t always so rosy for the big Italian in Paris. His first couple of seasons were marked by a series of glaring high profile errors, and even as recently as in the first half of last season, he was making mistakes with alarming frequency, most notably in the Champions League group stage, in matches against Arsenal and Atletico Madrid. It’s true that football fans can be fickle and have a short memory, but even the most ardent PSG fans must admit that the only period of his time at PSG in which Donnarumma was truly world class were his last six months at the club, where he went up another level, and made key saves, both in open play and in penalty shoot outs, to lead his side to European success.

Enrique wanted a keeper who was better with his feet: something that Donnarumma has always found to be difficult. The Italian, while not abject with the ball, has made big mistakes for PSG in those very situations, perhaps most memorably in the 2021-22 Champions League campaign against Real Madrid, in which he gave the ball away to Karim Benzema at a vital moment, allowing the Frenchman to score and drag Madrid back into a tie in which they seemed dead and buried.

PSG’s elimination was of course pinned largely on their superstar attacking trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, but Donnarumma also had to shoulder some of the blame, and in fact many Parisian fans at the time were calling for him to replaced by the more experienced Kaylor Navas.

Enrique also has emphasised technical aspect across the pitch as an important aspect of his playing style: his three midfielders are all impeccable technicians first and foremost, as are essentially all of the outfield starters that won the Champions League a few months ago. Donnarumma is not at that level of security: and that is surely the reasoning behind Enrique’s choice.

As for the Italian’s replacement, Lucas Chevalier, few would have predicted him to make such a difficult start to life in Paris. He was, at Lille, one of the most promising young goalkeepers in the world, very much on the radar of many of Europe’s elite clubs and seemed perhaps the strongest replacement PSG could find for the departing number one.

In truth, he has perhaps at least been better with the ball at his feet: he averages almost three times more passes completed with his feet than Donnarumma this season, also managing to be significantly more accurate with his long passes. However, it is his goalkeeping ability that has been called into question: he has made key mistakes in a number of high profile fixtures, most notably against Marseille in ‘Le Classique’ and overall has looked far from assured, with PSG conceding eleven goals in Ligue Un alone this season (Donnarumma has only conceded four in the objectively more challenging premier league).

It is something to ponder for Enrique. Chevalier is only a young goalkeeper, and should improve with time – his potential at Lille was clear for all to see. However, it does feel as though perhaps PSG pushed Donnarumma out a tad too hastily, given that he is undeniably one of the best shotstoppers of the planet, in the prime of his career.