10 December 2023 , 22:30
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James Trafford claimed that he could not remember the majority of his 10 saves to preserve a draw.
So as the Burnley goalkeeper waited in the Amex tunnel area to grab a word with Brighton's Adam Lallana, whom he knows from the England under-21 setup, he sat on the carpet and watched the highlights back on his phone.
Trafford deserved the opportunity to enjoy his heroics in montage form but, as he does with every game, he was planning to analyse it in “harsh” detail with the coaching staff on the way home.
Not that there was much to criticise from an exceptional performance. Trafford did not just deprive Brighton of the win their dominance would usually guarantee but he offered up proof that the Clarets have the resilience required to survive.
“I can’t really remember them but I liked the one that just hit us,” he said of his favourite save, in turn offering up the weekend’s biggest understatement.
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The stop in question was from Simon Adingra, a sprawling block reminiscent of Peter Schmeichel at full stretch. “It dropped to the guy in the box and it came off my knee. That was quite cool,” Trafford continued. “I’ll watch it with [goalkeeping coach Jelle ten Rouwelaar] on the way home.
“We analyse every game whether it’s good, bad or indifferent. Me and Jelle will analyse it in depth because we want to strive to be the best and both share the same goal. We’re harsh. He’s harsh on me and we try to improve every day.”
James Trafford of Burnley. (James Marsh/REX/Shutterstock)There were also spectacular saves in the dying embers to keep out Albion’s latest academy graduate Jack Hinshelwood and Kaoru Mitoma, while the reaction of his opposite number Bart Verbruggen, a bystander for long spells, was telling.
“He was amazing,” the Brighton keeper said. “He played a brilliant game. You have to give credit to the opponent when he deserves it. I think he was outstanding. Good for him. but not good for us.”
Equally impressive was how Trafford doubled down in his efforts to secure a draw when Burnley’s heads could easily have dropped after Adingra headed in Albion’s equaliser on 77 minutes.
A predictable onslaught followed, yet not one of the hosts’ nine attempts in added time could beat Trafford - from Pascal Gross and Evan Ferguson in addition to Hinshelwood and Mitoma.
“Obviously I’m quite disappointed to concede the one that went in but you just have to dust yourself down and go again and get something from the game, which is what we did,” Trafford said.
Manager Vincent Kompany described Trafford and goalscorer Wilson Odobert, whose strike a minute before half-time took a minor deflection, as two of the “many gems” in his squad.
But the former Manchester City captain now needs his rough diamonds to become polished with a crunch meeting against Everton to come next weekend. And Trafford, who joined the Clarets in a £15m switch from Manchester City a fortnight after winning the Under-21 Euros, is aware that he remains on a steep learning curve.
“I’m under no illusion it’s been tough, especially the first few games,” he added. “They were extremely tough and completely new to us. But as every game has gone on we’ve been getting better quickly. I feel I belong in the league and the position I’m in.”
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