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Pundit Alan Brazil believes goalkeeper David Raya is not worthy of being Arsenal's main man between the sticks. He labelled the Spaniard a waste of money after his side's loss to Porto in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, February 21.
The Gunners signed Raya on loan from Brentford last summer. Many expected Aaron Ramsdale to be Arsenal's regular starter this season after he played every single minute of Premier League action last season. However, Raya has overtaken Ramsdale in the pecking order, causing speculation over the English shot-stopper's future at the club.
The Gunners locked horns with Porto at the Estadio do Dragao in the first leg of the Round of 16 on Wednesday, February 21. After a successful run in the group stages that saw them top their respective group, Arsenal suffered a 1-0 defeat against the Portuguese side.
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Porto winger Galeno found the back of the net in the dying embers of the encounter from a long way out, beating Raya in goal. Brazil wasn't having it after the match as the pundit said (via TBR Football):
“I’m sorry, listen, I hate picking on players and I still don’t think he should be in goal, in my own personal opinion. I think it was a waste of money."
Raya has registered 26 appearances in the Premier League and the Champions League for the Gunners this season, recording 11 clean sheets.
"The transitions were hurting them" - Rio Ferdinand reacts to Arsenal's 1-0 loss to Porto
Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has criticized Arsenal for not creating enough chances against Porto. The pundit believes the Gunners were weak in transitions as well as he said on TNT Sports (via Caught Offside):
“I said in the first half the transitions were hurting them and I thought they had good control at parts, but at this level you’ve got to create chances, get beyond teams and make keepers work and Arsenal never really got to that stage today."
The north London side had no shots on target in the entire game despite having seven total attempts.
Meanwhile, Gabriel Martinelli attempted a cross-field pass to Bukayo Saka and gave the ball away to Porto, allowing Galeno to find the stoppage-time winner. Ferdinand called out at the Brazilian's rather careless ball and added:
“You have to approach these games right and if you make mistakes and give the ball away cheaply at this level you get punished.”
The Gunners will next face Newcastle United in the Premier League at the Emirates on Sunday, February 25. The north London outfit are third in the league standings, one point behind second-placed Manchester City and five behind leaders Liverpool. City and Arsenal have a game in hand though.
