Charles Watts has named both Andre Onana and David Raya as potential replacements for Bernd Leno, who has been linked with the Arsenal exit door.
The German international fuelled speculation of his potential exit when telling reporters at a pre-match press conference that he was open to a new challenge, despite being happy in North London, and the club appears to have heeded the warning of those words.
We are claimed to have readied ourselves for his potential departure by lining up two potential replacements, although both have been on our radar previously.
Onana was believed to have been in our sights in January, before we agreed to bring Mat Ryan in on loan instead, a move that has since worked out well.
The Cameroon international is sidelined due to a ban however, after supposedly taking a banned substance, a ban which he is currently appealing.
Raya was another who was linked with a switch to the Emirates in recent windows, with the Brentford goalkeeper having been the most strongly linked amidst the transfer storm surrounding Emiliano Martinez last summer, before we eventually signed Alex Runarsson instead.
Charles Watts insists that we remain interested in both however.
“Arsenal are looking at Onana, the Ajax keeper,” the correspondent told his YouTube channel this week. “They like David Raya as well. If Bernd Leno is going to go this summer, it could well happen.”
Which shot-stopper would you prefer to see arriving in place of Leno?
Patrick
Both keepers Onana & Raya are good. Its going to be a stiff competition to be no.1
Neither. They made a huge error letting Martinez leave in the Summer, Wenger would have allowed him to keep his position in the team after such outstanding form which yielded 2 trophies. Leno has always been a goalkeeper who is prone to errors however neither Onana or Reya would represent an improvement. We need a goalkeeper who is primarily there to keep clean sheets and the ball out of the net. It is not entertainment watching the goalkeeper and back four struggle to construct attacks from our own box, we need to get further up the field playing a number 9 who can hold up the ball and squeeze teams in their own half. I would rather see Szczęsny return or Unai Simon of Atletic Bilbao, while Rui Silva of Granada is superior to the names mentioned in the article and is available on a free transfer this summer.
David Raya is not a good choice.
Not experienced enough in this level, he is relatively short, and will be relatively expensive especially if Bentford was promoted, his contract runs to 2024.
Pros is he is home grown (another reason to be expensive) and doing well in Championship, good reflexes, positioning and decisions mostly when he comes off the line to save close ranges.
His ball handling techniques is unfinished business, sometimes does not punch the ball away enough when it is hard to catch.
I prefer Onana, I do not trust our goalkeeping coach. Since he came we sold Martinez, bought Alex with due respect and Leno is not improving and was reportedly unhappy and wanted Woodman, and Raya is his choice.
Onana, perhaps.Raya, no thanks.A number of contributors to this site are keen to criticise Matt Ryan’s lack of height well Raya too, is only 6ft and he will never be a commanding presence in goal.His main asset is his skills in playing out from the back, but being old fashioned, I prefer to judge a keeper on his handling ability not his ball control.
There is NO WAY Onana will leave Ajax and the Champions League to join a mid-table club not in Europe. He’s still suspended anyway.
Raya, as has been said, is a poor choice. Waste of time and money.
In Mat Ryan we have an AMAZING goalkeeper who actually is a MUCH BETTER fit for the system that Arsenal are playing, and with his experience he is more than capable of starting regularly and doing a job for us. Keep him on, give him his chance, and let’s NOT let him become another Emi Martinez.
Andre Onana seria un excelente fichaje
Raya recommended by our own goalkeeper coach, the same one who recommended Runnaarson. NAAAAAAAH!!!!!!
yeah , wot Reggie said! onana apart from already being in cl is not an upgrade on leno , and everybody knew Emi was the one to keep but hey ho.
not prepared to put anyone forward as worldwide my scouts are in short supply , but neither of these guys are close to good enough
Trust the process AFCam, it was always the plan to sell Martinez, buy Runaarson, Loan Ryan and sell Leno, to sort out our goalkeeper problem, that we didn’t have a year ago.
Alban Lafont,young french keeper currently on loan at Nantes from Fiorentina,young experienced,potentially frances future number one,put him with Matt Ryan that would be two good keepers.
Onana