- Arsenal set to sign Brentford's Raya
- Spaniard to compete with Ramsdale for No.1 spot
- Gunners keeper welcomes challenge
WHAT HAPPENED? Arsenal are set to sign Brentford goalkeeper Raya for £30million ($38m). The Spaniard, 27, will arrive at the Emirates Stadium to challenge Ramsdale for the number one spot, with back-up stopper Matt Turner set to join Nottingham Forest. Now, the 25-year-old, who started all of the Gunners' Premier League games last season, has welcomed the chance to duke it out to be first choice between the sticks.
WHAT THEY SAID: "Bring it on. Nothing comes easy in football. But also at the same time you need to move along and adapt as well. I’ve done it to other people when I’ve moved to clubs," Ramsdale told ITV Sport when asked about Raya's potential arrival. "I’m not going to be thinking that it’s never going to happen to me. So, yeah, I think if it happens, it happens and then we’ll fight and we’ll make each other the best version of ourselves because that’s what the manager is telling us as well.
"I’m sure whoever plays, me, Matt [Turner], whoever comes in, the goalkeeping union, people will laugh at but it’s a real thing, and your individual disappointment will go away and you’ll put the team first and you’ll put that goalkeeper first as well."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Ramsdale kept 13 clean sheets for Arsenal in the Premier League in 2022-23 but manager Mikel Arteta has reportedly become more concerned with some aspects of his game. Arsenal's move for Raya could be a sign that Arteta does not have complete faith in the England international, or he feels the former Sheffield United man needs some competition to raise his game.
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(C)Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT? Raya, who kept 11 clean sheets last term and had the best save percentage in the division at 77.7 (with Ramsdale at 70.6), looks set to be announced as an Arsenal player this week. The Gunners start their Premier League campaign on Saturday, August 12, against Nottingham Forest. All eyes will be on who starts in goal against Steve Cooper's team this weekend.