EXCLUSIVE: We get the inside info on Leeds target Angus Gunn

News broke yesterday that Leeds United were interested in young Manchester City goalkeeper Angus Gunn. Gunn is a highly regarded prospect in the Manchester City system, but he’s yet to make an appearance for the first team at the Etihad Stadium. Instead, he’s played in both the Premier League 2 team and spent last season on loan at Norwich City.

While at Norwich, Gunn was one of the better keepers in the Championship last season. And while Norwich’s season didn’t exactly go has hoped for the faithful in Norfolk, Gunn’s play had very little to do with anything that went wrong at Carrow Road.

We got in contact with Gary Gowers of MyFootballWriter to get the inside information on Angus Gunn, his time at Norwich, and what he expects the future to be for the young keeper who started out on the books of Norwich before making the switch to City.

TIAT: Was the plan always for Gunn to leave after one season? Did Norwich City make any attempt to sign him on a permanent basis? Would Leeds have any chance to make the deal permanent, or is he considered the keeper of the future at Manchester City?

GG: When he arrived there were rumours floating around (wholly unsubstantiated) that while it was formally a year-long loan, there was a verbal agreement on it being for two seasons. Probably rubbish to be fair, but at no point was there ever any expectation that we would sign him permanently. We still consider him ‘one of our own’ as he was part of our academy up to the age of 15 and, of course, his dad is a City legend but it’s well known that Guardiola rates him and so we knew our place! If he does move to Leeds, I wouldn’t recommend getting too attached as Pep sees him as a Man City keeper (probably second choice) of the future.

TIAT: Statistics say that Gunn was one of the better keepers in the Championship last season. Is that a true reflection of how his season went last year and is it in line with his ability?

GG: Simple answer is yes. The stats don’t lie. As we speak he’s training with the England World Cup squad, so that pretty much says it all. We’d like to have had him for another season and I’m sure he’d not have objected to another, but with us not having a pot to piss in any more, we are going to be making use of the loan market - and with Remi Matthews now ready to step up it’s a loan spot we probably couldn’t afford to use up. To be honest, I expect you to lose out to a mid-Prem side.

TIAT: How does Gunn play? Does he get into position early and make the game simple, or does he over-rely on reflexes to make plays? How is he at playing out of the back?

GG: In his first ever season in senior football, he excelled in nearly every department. He’s big and dominant in the box, has brilliant reflexes and, best of all, is terrific with the ball at his feet (probably the main reason why Pep rates him so highly).

TIAT: How lucky should Leeds fans feel if this deal goes through?

GG: Very lucky! I’m not convinced he’ll end up in the Championship (and I hope not, cos it’d be weird having him play against us) but if he does then you’ll love him. Other than the ‘experience’ box, all of the others are ticked.