Arteta: 'No one is sure to start at Arsenal'
In the summer of 2021, Aaron Ramsdale was recruited by Arsenal for a fee of 33 million USD from Sheffield United and immediately took the official position of Bernd Leno. In the Premier League last season, the English goalkeeper caught all 38 games, kept 14 clean sheets, saved 95 times, won the best saves of the month twice, conceded 43 goals and made two mistakes leading to goals. lose.
Despite Ramsdale's stable performance, coach Arteta still wants to strengthen the goalkeeper with good footwork to compete for the official position. On August 15, he was granted this wish, when Arsenal borrowed David Raya from Brentford with an option to buy outright for $ 35 million in the summer of 2024.
During the press conference before the match against Crystal Palace in the second round of the English Premier League, Arteta said Raya enhances both quality, depth and healthy competition in the wooden frame. He emphasized that he wanted each Arsenal position to have two players of the same level.
The Spanish coach also took the fact that Real had to rush into the transfer floor and borrow Kepa from Chelsea after goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois ruptured his ligaments, likely to be out of the 2023-2024 season, to protect his point of view. "If Ramsdale is seriously injured, what would you say? So Arsenal have to be proactive, prepared and now have two excellent goalkeepers who fit the desired team standards," he said.
According to Arteta, not only the goalkeeper, but also the positions above must strive to compete and no one will default to the starting position. "We have two goalkeepers, two left wingers, two strikers and great central midfielders. That's not the problem," continued the 41-year-old coach. "Arsenal wants to get better every day and to be better the environment has to change, to be more competitive. I've seen it with my own players now compared to two years ago. To play well. rather, we have to create that competitive environment."
In this press conference, in addition to the recruitment of Raya, Arteta talked a lot about Jurrien Timber - a Dutch rookie who suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee and is likely to miss the rest of the season. The Spaniard admits it was a shock for both the club and Timber, but at the same time sees injuries as part of football, and Arsenal must adapt. Arteta said Timber remains positive despite realizing the extent of his injury and time out. He affirmed that the whole team will help the 22-year-old defender in the very long journey ahead.
Arteta hinted that he will not buy a defender to replace Timber in the last two weeks of the summer market, but prefer to use the available players. The Spanish coach pointed out Kieran Tierney's arrival at the end of the English Super Cup match against Man City at Wembley on August 6, and confirmed the Scottish defender was still in the team's plan. He said that Oleksandr Zinchenko has returned to training, but is unlikely to return in time for the trip to Selhurst Park.
Arteta considers the fact that Timber, Kevin De Bruyne of Man City, Emiliano Buendia, Tyrone Mings of Aston Villa or Courtois and Eder Militao of Real Madrid early long-term injuries from the start of the season stem from a tight schedule at club level, matches. compete at the team level - including the 2022 World Cup, and a lot of travel for pre-season friendlies.
