Pundit ‘not sold’ on Arteta signing as Arsenal star is accused of making ‘mistakes’
Troy Deeney isn’t convinced that David Raya is the long-term goalkeeping solution for Arsenal as the pundit thinks Mikel Arteta’s side can do better.
Arteta made the bold decision to sign a new goalkeeper in the summer in order to compete with Aaron Ramsdale.
While the decision was met with a lot of scrutiny at the time, the underlying stats have vindicated Arteta’s decision to bring in the Brentford goalkeeper.
Having only conceded 26 goals in the Premier League this season, the Gunners boast the best defensive record in the league.
However, despite the stats suggesting that Arsenal have improved with Raya between the sticks, Deeney isn’t convinced that Raya is that much of an upgrade on Ramsdale.
“I am still not sold on the goalie,” Deeney told talkSPORT when discussing Raya.
“I am not. I don’t see… I know they wanted to get rid of Ramsdale, or have competition is the word they say when they want to replace him, but I don’t think they replaced him with the standout goalie where you go, ‘Oh, that’s my goalie for the next four, five six years. Do you get what I mean?
“I think in a year’s time, they will be looking at Raya and going, ‘Is he the reason we can get over the line or not?’ Because he has made a few mistakes this year similarly to what Ramsdale did.”
Arteta happy with Raya
While Deeney is yet to be convinced by Raya, Arteta seems happy enough with the 28-year-old shot-stopper and his impact this season.
Following Arsenal’s triumph over Porto on penalties, Arteta was quick to praise the Brentford loanee for his “personality and ambition”.
“David had some difficult moments at the start,” Arteta told reporters. “He has stood up with incredible personality and ambition and in the end he’s been rewarded.”
The Gunners do have the option to sign Raya on a permanent basis at the end of the season for £27m and as things stand, they seem likely to take up this option.
With Ramsdale seemingly heading for the exit door in the upcoming window, Arteta seems happy enough to stick with the Spanish goalkeeper for the foreseeable future.
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