Mikel Arteta may claim that his decision to prefer David Raya over Aaron Ramsdale is for the betterment of Arsenal. Even so, for some Gooners, who appreciate Ramsdale’s efforts to elevate them where they are, him being dropped from the Arsenal’s starting lineup has been unfair.
Ramsdale has only made four league appearances this season, while Raya has made eight.
Ramsdale has only played six games in all competitions, keeping two clean sheets and conceding eight goals, whereas Raya has played twelve games, keeping six clean sheets and conceding nine goals.
Though statistics may indicate why Raya is preferred, David Seaman believes Ramsdale is still a world-class goalie. The great Arsenal goalkeeper is concerned that the Englishman playing second fiddle to Raya may cost him the opportunity to become England’s first choice. “If he’s not playing [for Arsenal], it’s going to affect his [England] chances,” Seaman, who won three Premier League titles in his 13 years at Arsenal, told the BBC.
“Going into next summer, where Aaron is pushing to become England goalkeeper, he needs to be playing.”
That said, Seaman believes Ramsdale, whom he describes as “top-class,” could still be Arsenal’s first choice, and that after he plays against Brentford (a game Raya cannot play because he cannot face his parent club) this weekend, Arteta can prove his goalkeeping decision by who he starts at goal the game after the Brentford one.
“If Aaron goes in at the weekend, then he’s left out for the next game, then we know who Mikel’s number one is,” Seaman added.
“It’s not good for Aaron. He’s a top-class goalkeeper; there’s no doubt about that.”
Seaman goes on to suggest that, if Arteta doesn’t start rotating keepers soon, it may already be too late Ramsdale to fix his awkward situation ahead of next summer’s Euros.”I think January will be a bit too soon [for a move away],” he said.
“It’s the game after this weekend, that’s where we will find a lot of answers. From what Mikel was saying when he brought Raya in, when he talked about rotating goalkeepers in games, which I still found a bit bizarre, we’ll have to wait and see after this game.
“Aaron’s too good to be a number two, that is for sure.”
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