Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale will be happy to finally be back in Premier League action when the Gunners play Brentford this evening. However, deep down he will know that his time back in the first team will only last one match.
Ramsdale will play at the Gtech Community Stadium, with David Raya ineligible to face his parent club. It will be the first time since September that Ramsdale has played a top-flight match.
But Mikel Arteta has made it clear with recent selection that Raya is his No 1 moving forward. The Spaniard has started the last 12 matches across the Premier League and Champions League since replacing Ramsdale at Everton over two months ago.
Raya has not always covered himself in glory, making a few high-profile errors. But he is doing what Arteta wants from his goalkeeper and there could be no way back for Ramsdale.
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The England star has been limited to Carabao Cup action of late, a competition the Gunners crashed out of at West Ham at the beginning of November. Ramsdale will be hoping to send a message to Arteta with his performance in west London later today.
But even a starring display is likely to fall on deaf ears. Arsenal play Lens in the Champions League on Wednesday and Raya is almost certain to come straight back in for that match.
Ramsdale feels aggrieved to have lost his starting spot just months after signing a new contract. He has even had his dad, Nick, come out and fight his corner.
Ramsdale senior spoke on The Highbury Squad podcast during the international break and revealed that Arteta had not told his son he would be dropped for the foreseeable future. He said: “Aaron is going to be the cup goalkeeper, and David Raya is going to be the main man unless something happens, an injury or a sending-off.
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“Aaron’s got to live with that and he is living with that even though he’s not been told it. By anybody.”
Arteta has not publicly stated that Raya is his No 1. He said in September that he would be rotating his goalkeepers as he sees them as no different to any other position on the pitch.
But actions speak louder than words and Ramsdale has been frozen out for the majority of matches since. One of last season’s PFA Team of the Year winners will be back in action today but it will only be a short-lived spell before returning to the bench in midweek.
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