SALE DATE REVEALED: Arsenal set Aaron Ramsdale sale date after Wenger tells Arteta his strategy ‘doesn’t work’
Arsenal might already be ready to revert to having a clear no.1 and no.2 in their goalkeeper hierarchy by replacing Aaron Ramsdale with a new deputy to David Raya, according to reports.
Over the summer, Arsenal brought Raya in from Brentford in an initial loan deal that is expected to eventually become permanent. Since then, manager Mikel Arteta has insisted he will rotate the two goalkeepers at his disposal, neither of whom have been declared his outright first choice.
However, many pundits immediately criticised his new policy for the instability that it could cause. Furthermore, it now appears that Raya is getting more than his fair share of opportunities in contrast to Ramsdale.
Claims have been made in recent weeks that Raya may have been given more promises behind the scenes than Arteta let on in public. Now, reports are claiming Arsenal could do away with their plan of having two keepers of a similar level.
According to Football Insider, the resolution of this saga will see Ramsdale sold by Arsenal. However, his exit has been pencilled in for next summer and not the January transfer window.
Once he is out of the door, the report claims Arsenal will look to bring in someone more happy to play second fiddle to Raya.
By then, there will still be pressure on Arteta to prove he has made the right decision. Ramsdale has been fairly consistent for Arsenal in his previous two seasons as their starting goalkeeper, so Raya must prove he is an upgrade.
Interestingly, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has voiced his support for the usurped Ramsdale.
Wenger told beIN Sports: “Personally I like Ramsdale. If I was in his position, I would not give up because I believe he has a chance to come back into the team.
“[Is Ramsdale] better? I don’t know. I just think Ramsdale has made decisive saves in the games last season. They were not happy maybe with his feet.”
After Arteta’s near miss last season, Wenger remains the most recent manager to guide Arsenal to the Premier League title.
Rotating goalkeepers simply ‘doesn’t work’ – Wenger
And the legendary former boss has never shared similar thoughts about rotating goalkeepers – although he did give a reason why Arteta may have made the decision.
Wenger added: “Always, that’s my belief. I don’t believe in rotating goalkeeper, it’s a lack of clarity of the hierarchy.
“That doesn’t work unless the hierarchy exists until you say ‘look it’s two or three bad performances and now it’s a change and I give a chance to the other one’. The hierarchy has to be clear.
“On the other hand, when you’re in this position, it happened to me many times, you have a good team and you want to improve it. You look and think ‘what can I improve?’ Maybe the distribution from the back.
“It happened to me with the centre-backs, you want the guy who has better distribution from the back. And then you realise he is less good defensively and his first job is to defend.”
TEAMtalk understands Chelsea have shown an interest in Ramsdale in case he does become available in 2024, despite investing in a new goalkeeper themselves over the summer in the shape of Robert Sanchez from Brighton.
