Mikel Arteta ‘HUMILIATED’ Aaron Ramsdale by dropping him for David Raya for Arsenal’s win at Everton, claims Piers Morgan, as he questions treatment of ‘consistently superb’ England keeper
- Mikel Arteta opted to hand David Raya his first Arsenal start in the Everton clash
- The Gunners boss also swapped summer signing Kai Havertz for Fabio Vieira
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Piers Morgan has accused Mikel Arteta of ‘humiliating’ Aaron Ramsdale after the Arsenal boss dropped him for David Raya for the match against Everton.
Raya made his first start for the Gunners since joining from Brentford on a £3million loan move during the trip to Goodison Park, which Arsenal won 1-0 thanks to a fantastic goal from Leandro Trossard.
The decision to drop Ramsdale in favor of the Spaniard was criticized by Arsenal fan Morgan.
‘I don’t understand what Ramsdale did to deserve being dropped? Havertz, yes… but Ramsdale has always been fantastic for us. Why humiliate him?’
However, others suggested it was a smart move ahead of Arsenal’s opening Champions League match against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday.
Piers Morgan claims Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta ‘humiliated’ number 1 goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale
Ramsdale was left on the bench for the trip to Everton, which Arsenal won 1-0
The two goalkeepers will have to compete for a starting place in Arteta’s squad this season
Chelsea’s £65million summer signing Kai Havertz was also left on the bench. The German has struggled since his move to the Emirates and was replaced in the starting XI by Fabio Vieira.
Arteta also once again decided to keep Eddie Nketiah up front, with last season’s big signing Gabriel Jesus named on the bench.
The Arsenal manager’s decision to sign a new goalkeeper this summer has raised eyebrows given Ramsdale’s form and Raya’s performances for Brentford.
Ahead of the match, Arteta refused to confirm whether the change was indicative of his favorite goalkeeper.
“I think I said we wanted to be the team with two quality players in this position with different characteristics, and we have that now,” he said.
‘To maximize that we have to play matches and there are many matches coming up now. It’s the same as other players we’ve rotated and they’ll get a lot of game time in the next few games.”
Ramsdale has established himself as the Gunners’ No. 1 since arriving from Sheffield United in 2021 and is widely seen as first-choice back-up to England starting goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Raya joined the Gunners this summer to provide Ramsdale competition for the club’s number 1 position. His competitive debut marked the first time Ramsdale did not start a Premier League match since March 2022.
Raya impressed Arsenal fans with his composed performance against Everton at Goodison Park
Kai Havertz was replaced by Fabio Vieira in the only other change after the club’s 3-1 win over Man United
