Arsenal have agreed a Ԁєɑł to sign Brentford goalkeeper David Raya, which would lead to a competition for the number one spot with Aaron Ramsdale.
Arsenal have agreed a Ԁєɑł with Brentford to sign David Raya,football.londonunderstands.
The Spanish goalkeeper has starred for the Bees since his move to west London from Blackburn Rovers in 2019.Raya’sperformances in the top-flight have seen him gain international recognition, earning two caps for La Roja, and keeping 12 clean sheets last season.
football.londonunderstands that Mikel Arteta’s side have agreed a fee close to £30million for Raya, who has entered the final year of his Brentford contract. The Bees were understood to be initially demanding £40million.
TheGunnershave been targeting a move for the 27-year-old in recent weeks and the ‘keeper was spotted in attєɴԀance at Wembley Stadium on Sunday for the Community Shield. His arrival will provide strong competition forAaron Ramsdale’sstatus as Arsenal’s number one, with back-up ‘keeper Matt Turner nearing a move to Nottingham Forest.
Bayern Munich were also said to have identified the Brentford shot-stopper as a possible target but journalist Fabrizio Romano claims that Raya ‘only wanted’ to join the Gunners and has agreed a five-year contract, subject to a medical, after already agreeing personal terms.
It will be interesting to see how the battle to be Arsenal’s number one will unfold. Ramsdale was ever-present during Arsenal’s charge last season, having replaced Bernd Leno as first-choice during the 2021/22 campaign.
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When asked what the arrival of Raya would mean for Ramsdale’s place in the starting XI,Mikel Arteta replied: “The competition always exists whoever it is. That’s how it has to feel like. It has to feel like this and if it doesn’t feel like this we’re not gonna get the best out of each player. So we’d better feel like this and make sure we all feel like this. Me first.”
