Arsenal will confirm the permanent signing of David Raya “soon”, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
The Gunners paid an initial £3m to bring in the 28-year-old on loan last summer, with a £27m option to buy. Asked by GiveMeSport whether the goalkeeper will be staying at the Emirates beyond the end of the season, Romano replied:
“It will be soon. From what I’ve heard, it’s already agreed, so I don’t know when they will make it official. It’s something that they already agreed in the summer. The Raya deal was going to be permanent at the beginning, but they had to change the structure of the deal because of Financial Fair Play. Brentford decided to help Arsenal with that, but it is not going to change anything. The deal will be made permanent.”
While some fans on X are happy Raya will be staying, others are not so pleased:
I really don’t think that’s a good idea. I think the money could be better spent elsewhere. He hasn’t done anything to justify a permanent transfer apart from a penalty save.
— Arsenal Man 🔴⚪🔴 (@SalibaUltra) January 16, 2024
Complete waste of money in my opinion! Do I think he’s a big enough upgrade on Ramsdale to warrant paying £30m in total? No I don’t… save that money and put it towards a ST in the summer!
— Unbiased Football Views (@UnbiasedFV) January 16, 2024
Haven’t been convincing at all. Too short, erratic, and his ball playing ability so far is nothing to shout about
— Kasey Rolley (@flauntmg) January 16, 2024
Is there any way we can cancel the loan
— 🇳🇴🇮🇹 (@odeball8) January 16, 2024
Send Him Back
— Tommy Egan (@TommyEganAFC) January 16, 2024
Cancel the deal. He’s not an upgrade on Ramsdale
— AFCKUNO_ (@AfcKuno_) January 16, 2024
Terrible decision! He’s not an upgrade from Ramsdale. Get another good keeper not a midfielder with gloves. A keeper’s first assignment is to stop goals not make good passes from back
— adeyemi oluwamuyiwa (@takeeeasy) January 16, 2024
Worst transfer under Arteta by a mile.
— Mattias Larsson (@16_mattias) January 16, 2024
Raya must prove that he can be Arsenal’s long-term no.1
It’s fair to say that the Spaniard has struggled to live up to expectations since moving to the Gunners in August. There was clearly pressure on him after he replaced Aaron Ramsdale in the starting eleven.
While Raya has improved somewhat from a very shaky start, his 61.5% save ratio does not make for good reading. If he wants to remain as Arsenal’s No.1 going forward, he will have to show more than he has produced so far.
