There appears to be a changing of the guard at Arsenal's goal, with David Raya replacing Aaron Ramsdale. Photo: PA/Nigel French
If I may pinch and tinker with a familiar observation about title-contending teams: you can't win anything without a top-class goalkeeper.
A reliable No. 1 is the key to success. the building block of any side that brings the biggest prizes in football. Time and again, the greatest managers win the Premier League or Champions League after a ruthless and necessary change of sticks.
That's why Mikel Arteta signed David Raya and left Aaron Ramsdale out of Arsenal's last two matches, sparking debate over the merits of choosing between what many consider equal-status goalkeepers.
If Raya starts it In the derby in north London at the weekend — and given his first two appearances there is no reason to count him out — the debate over who really is Arsenal's number one ends. Ramsdale will have to adjust to spending a lot of time on the bench this season and speculation about his move is likely to intensify before next season begins.
For me, this is a logical decision, choose Raya. Simply put, he is a better goalkeeper than Ramsdale.
I'm not saying Ramsdale is poor or that he doesn't have the potential to improve and have a great career at the highest level. The key difference now is that Ramsdale is a top four goalkeeper rather than a title holder. Raya has made a huge impression at Brentford and deserves the chance to show what he can do at a club under greater scrutiny and pressure.
Raya has more of the qualities Arteta is looking for to find those extra percentages that could make the difference between first and second. He has superior technique and is calmer on the ball. He stopped more shots than any Premier League goalkeeper last year, with a save rate of 77 per cent to Ramsdale's 68 per cent. One of the most important statistical comparisons is how much more effective Raya is at requiring crosses. Last season he made significantly more 'high demands' than Ramsdale (52 to 22).
This played a decisive role in Arteta introducing him against Everton last week, a team whose only Arsenal's means of harm were high passes and set pieces. Unlike the game at Goodison Park last season, Arsenal showed little concern.
If Arteta keeps his word and is willing to make an in-game change to his number one — an idea that seems to have caused consternation within the goalkeeping union — you'll see how it can work and make sense.
Raya made almost no mistakes in his first two matches for Arsenal Photo: Getty Images/Julian Finney
Top teams like Manchester City and Arsenal tend to dominate possession for 90 minutes and are at their most vulnerable during frantic finals when they get nervous. can consolidate the result, and their opponents will resort to more direct play and long passes into the penalty area. In such circumstances, why not turn to a goalkeeper more experienced in dealing with this physical problem in the air?
I love the way Arteta thinks about the game and challenges established 'truths'. If a goalkeeper looks like he's having a bad day, or seems particularly vulnerable to corners or diagonal free kicks, why don't you take him out the same way you would a struggling defender? The idea that a goalkeeper's feelings will be hurt or his confidence will be damaged by a substitution must be put aside. This is bullshit. They are professionals as outfield players.
There has been a lot of sympathy for Ramsdale since Arteta signed Raya and made it clear he would not join as a reserve player. I am baffled by the severity of some of the criticisms.
During the title race last season, Arsenal faltered in difficult moments. In some of the games where they dropped critical points the difference was small and Arteta will carefully analyze how and where they could have been better. The goalie position was one such area.
Ramsdale had a superb performance against Liverpool at Anfield but his form dipped in the immediate aftermath. He played poorly in the next three games against West Ham, Southampton and Manchester City. Again, this is not a case of being singled out to suggest that if Arsenal had had a better goalkeeper last season they would have fought off City. There were several factors that prevented them from crossing the line. However, when you have a diligent manager like Arteta, who always demands more from himself and everyone around him, it is no surprise that he jumped at the chance to sign Raya when he became available. If the coach's instinct tells him that he is not entirely happy with his goalkeeper, he will act.
Ramsdale's error led to Southampton scoring after 28 seconds in a key Premier League match in April. Photo: Getty Images/Shaun Botterill
That being said, Arteta is following a well-trodden path — and Ramsdale has already benefited from it since he was brought in. to challenge and ultimately replace Bernd Leno.
Jurgen Klopp knows Liverpool need to replace Simon Mignolet and Loris Karius with reigning world number one Alisson Becker to win the Champions League and Premier League.
Pep Guardiola inherited a decorated goalkeeper and England number one in Joe. Hart. One of his first announcements as City manager was to replace him with Claudio Bravo, showing he was looking for a different profile. When Bravo failed, Guardiola took decisive action and signed Ederson, who was one of the best goalkeepers in the history of the Premier League.
Looking back, Chelsea's defense went up a level after they signed Petr Cech and Jose Mourinho upped his level to win the league again by bringing in Thibaut Courtois to replace the Czech. Despite the fact that I mention him every week in CBS's Champions League coverage, Peter Schmeichel was arguably the best Premier League goalkeeper of them all, and a life-changing signing for Sir Alex Ferguson. They tried for years to replace him before Ferguson lured the established Edwin van der Sar to Old Trafford.
Arsenal fans of my generation can also hear echoes of the past in Arteta's ruthlessness towards Ramsdale.
John Lukic won the league championship with Arsenal in 1989 and Leeds United in 1992, but this is not means it was wrong for George Graham to replace him with David Seaman. Seaman won three top-flight titles at Highbury.
One of my football heroes as a child was Neville Southall. He demonstrated like no other how a world-class goalkeeper can change the course of history. Even many Liverpool fans will agree that if Southall had not been injured in the 1985–86 season, we might look back on it as the year Everton won the league and FA Cup double. Southall was very important.
A world class goalkeeper wins matches and trophies. The average one costs you them. Ramsdale is somewhere in the middle. It's his problem if Raya continues to look the part. For Arsenal to catch Manchester City they will need to be near perfect in every position. Being good is not enough.
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