Raya signs + Arteta on transfers and his own contract

Morning.

So, we made our first official signing of the summer yesterday, as David Raya joined on a permanent basis after spending last season on loan from Brentford. The fee is around £27m, and his contract will run for four years – until 2028, at which point he’ll be 32, still relatively young in the life of a goalkeeper.

Then again, he does have to keep on the right side of a manager who does love a goalkeeper signing.

Speaking to the official site, the boss said:

David showed us last season what an important player he is for us, so we are delighted he is now officially our player. He is a big presence in our dressing room and we are really pleased to keep working with him.

We know he will take the strong foundations he put in place last season and build on them in the years to come, and that he will enjoy more success with us. We have a very talented group of goalkeepers and I love to see connections like the one I see in our goalkeeping unit.

It was clear pretty quickly last season that Raya was brought in to be the number 1, despite Arteta’s uncharacteristically clumsy comments about ‘timeshare goalkeepers’, and although he had some wobbles here and there (mostly at the start), he played a big part in our season, so let’s hope there’s even more to come over the coming years.

And while this deal is not a surprise at all, it does bring into the spotlight the Aaron Ramsdale situation. He’s away with England, of course, but he won’t want to spend another season on the bench, so it’ll be fascinating to see what happens with him. Some will say Arsenal are in a strong position because he has a long-term contract, but the deal he signed last May also made him one of the best paid keepers in the Premier League, so that’s an issue when it comes to finding a new club. How many clubs can afford those wages? Not too many, so it might be a case he goes on loan with the hope that a good season wherever he plays generates a bit more interest than…

Source link : https://arseblog.com/2024/07/raya-signs-arteta-on-transfers-and-his-own-contract/

Author : arseblog

Publish date : 2024-07-05 06:03:26

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.