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Gianluigi Donnarumma “still has a lot to give”, says former Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar, despite the Italy shot-stopper’s recent spate of high-profile errors on the biggest stages.
The 23-year-old ended last season on the high of a Euro 2020 triumph with the Azzurri, shortly before a move to Paris Saint-Germain alongside fellow new recruits Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos.
But fast-forward nine months and he has struggled with costly performances for club and country, resulting in Italy’s failure to reach the World Cup and PSG’s Champions League exit.
Ex-Selecao goalkeeper Julio Cesar feels Donnarumma has possibly struggled with expectations since his arrival at the Parc des Princes.
He said: “Being a keeper is tough. Donnarumma made his debut at AC Milan when he was 16, then he joined the national team.
“He has already won a European Championship at such a young age, and then to join one of the strongest teams in the world, which is full of champions.
“Many positive things happened to this young man, sometimes it is not easy to have that personality you need to get on the pitch after all the things he has been through down the years.
“From being the strongest keeper of the world, to become the player making the mistake that kicked PSG out of the Champions League.
“Everybody was expecting PSG to reach the final simply because the club brought [Sergio] Ramos, [Achraf] Hakimi, [Lionel] Messi and him [Donnarumma].”
Donnarumma may not have been solely at fault for Italy’s World Cup play-off exit to North Macedonia or PSG’s elimination at the hands of Real Madrid.
But Julio Cesar believes the ex-Milan star needs to learn to maintain his level amid the peaks and troughs of the game to become one of the best in the business.
He added: “In football there are ups and downs but you need to be consistent if you want to become a great keeper.
“If you make a mistake during a match, you cannot miss the next 10 or 20 balls.
“Otherwise, you are out. This is what I think, however, the team did not help. I am talking about both club and national team.
“PSG did not do a nice game against Real Madrid, same for Italy when they had the chance to qualify for the World Cup.
“He is a lad who still has a lot to give to football, he can offer a lot to this sport. He is very young, and fans will be happy to watch him playing, because he is a young talent.”
