ARSENAL boss Mikel Arteta raised eyebrows with his decision to drop England keeper Aaron Ramsdale in favour of new Spanish signing David Raya.The Spanish shot-stopper has been linked to the Gunners in almost every transfer window for the past few years, mainly because of the former Brentford goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana, who is now part of Arteta’s staff.
David Raya has been impressive since moving to Arsenal
Aaron Ramsdale has been replaced despite being on fine form
This summer finally saw Raya make the move across London as Arsenal secured an initial loan with a pre-agreed fee of £27m at the end of the season.
Initially there was a feeling when the deal was announced that Raya was coming to the Emirates to provide competition for Ramsdale.
However, in a matter of weeks, Raya has forced his way into the first-team and consigned Ramsdale to a place on the bench.
This can be seen as harsh on Ramsdale as he has really done nothing wrong in this situation.
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And it led to a spat between Jamie Carragher and Ramsdale’s father earlier this week.
The Liverpool legend accused the Arsenal keeper of acting like a loser at the Oscars after he was seen applauding Raya’s superb save from the bench during the North London derby.
In response, Ramsdale’s dad, Nick, took to social media to say: “You are a disgrace!! Show some class!! My lad has.”
Ramsdale returned to the side for Arsenal’s Carabao Cup win over Brentford on Wednesday evening and produced a sensational save to preserve his clean sheet.
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Ramsdale applauded Raya’s save against Spurs on SundayCredit: Sky Sports
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However, his selection for the cup could be seen as further confirmation he is now Arteta’s No2.
This could simply be because Raya has been judged as the better keeper.
While at Brentford the Spaniard impressed with his reflexes, ability to fill his goal, aggression and timing when leaving his line to claim high crosses and dominate the penalty area.
Ramsdale is a good shot stopper but he can struggle to really control his area.
There is one aspect of their game, however, in which Raya is the clear stand-out and that is when playing from the back with the ball at his feet.
Raya is the far superior passer of the ball and with Arteta wanting a specific style of build-up it is likely that he will favour the keeper who can initiate attacks properly.
Here are three of the main tactical and technical issues that go into comparing the two shot-stoppers.
Ramsdale played plenty of short passes against Fulham
Raya had greater accuracy and a wider range of passing against Everton
Ability in build-up
This season one of the biggest tactical shifts has seen the use of keepers almost as third central defenders in the build-up play.
Having the keeper move forward, and out of the penalty area, in the first phase of build-up is a tactical choice that allows a team to build from the back safely while stopping the opposition from being able to press aggressively.
In the early stages of the season, we saw the likes of Ederson, at Manchester City, playing like this and the benefits when it comes to creating attacking situations in strong positions are easy to see.
Now, with Arteta seemingly looking to move towards a more controlled system of play with greater ball dominance, he needs a keeper who can effectively contribute in the early stages of the attack.
Crucially, this does not mean simply having a keeper who can pass but one who can pass through the lines of pressure to play into the midfield.
Raya shows composure in possession of the ball and has the ability to play forward
The key to building the attack in this manner is to effectively control the tempo of the ball movement.
If the pass is played forward too quickly then the attack might not be properly set.
Indeed, increasingly we are seeing top coaches looking to slow the first pass out from the back in order to encourage the opposition to press higher towards them.
This is intended to then create more space behind that initial press in order to allow the attacking team to play into safer spaces.
With a keeper who has the ability to play through the press and into the midfield with accuracy, this becomes much easier to achieve.
Ramsdale is more passive in possession with passes in front of the opposition press
If Arteta is intent on continuing to find ways to dominate the ball in the initial stages of build-up then it is likely that he will continue to favour Raya over Ramsdale.
Shot stopping and reflexes
While keepers in the modern game have to be capable of playing with their feet they still, of course, have to be capable keepers when it comes to shot-stopping and preventing opposition goals.
In this case both Ramsdale and Raya are actually extremely similar.
Both have excellent reflexes and both show a clear understanding of angles that allow them to cut off the goal when forwards are shooting from within the area.
Here though, once again, the argument can easily be made that Raya has a slight advantage over Ramsdale with Raya being the better technical keeper.
This means that when looking to move to cover ground Raya has the edge in terms of his footwork and timing when he goes down to make low saves.
Raya’s recovery save against Tottenham showcased his impressive footwork
Raya brilliantly saved from Brennan Johnson during the North London derbyCredit: Getty
Both Raya and Ramsdale are extremely similar when it comes to their ability to cut angles and to position themselves well to make saves.
Ramsdale is perhaps more prone to the spectacular, as we saw several times last season, but both can be counted on to make the saves that you would expect them to.
There are times, however, when Raya’s starting position in terms of defending from his line and moving forward to further cut off the angle is ahead of Ramsdale’s.
While there is not a lot between Raya and Ramsdale in terms of their shot-stopping and reflexes and neither would let Arsenal down in this regard, it is worth noting that Raya’s superior technical keeping will give him the edge.
Ramsdale showed impressive posture and initial position against Man Utd
Command of the area
The third of the three areas that keepers can be assessed on in the modern game is their command of the area.
In terms of their stature, Ramsdale is listed at 6’3” (190cm) and Raya at 6’1” (183cm) and you would think that as the taller keeper Ramsdale would be more dominant.
This is not, however, the case.
Ramsdale can at times be slightly hesitant when it comes to leaving his line to claim high balls into the area.
This can translate to his struggling at times with his handling and ability to safely claim the ball.
Raya is quick and aggressive in making up his mind to come out and claim the ball
When it comes to a keeper making up their mind as to when to come out and claim the ball in the air, any hesitation can create fear and distrust amongst their teammates.
If a defender does not believe that his keeper will claim and catch the ball then they are more likely to try to make a play that can lead to mistakes.
On the other hand, when a defence trusts their keeper they will be more confident in allowing them to control the aerial duels within the area.
While Ramsdale is the more likely to punch the ball, something often associated with continental keepers, Raya is a more traditional type in that he will look to catch the ball whenever possible before then setting his team on the counterattack with a quick release.
Ramsdale showed hesitation when leaving his line against Crystal Palace and spilled the ball at the first attempt
Having a keeper who is more likely to claim high balls safely then allows you to start immediate counterattacks and Raya is a keeper who has great long distribution – whether throwing or kicking.
Once again in this area, Raya has the edge over Ramsdale.
What does this mean?
In all three of the key sections that we have covered Raya has the edge in terms of performance over Ramsdale.
It is extremely unfortunate for Ramsdale that he has been dropped as he has shown he is an extremely capable keeper at the top level.
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The signing of Raya, however, has seen Arsenal sign a better keeper and this has quickly been shown as the Spaniard has taken the first-choice position.
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