The secrets of how David Raya became one of the world's best goalkeepers: Aerial dominance, the Premier League's No 1 shot-stopper, playing 'like a No 10' and the tweak that's opened up Arsenal's title charge

There was a time when Mikel Arteta was at pains to insist that David Raya was not, in fact, his No 1 goalkeeper. That position has very much changed.

But when the Spaniard had just joined Arsenal on an initial loan from Brentford in the summer of 2023, Arteta already had a decent custodian between the sticks in the shape of fan favourite and England international Aaron Ramsdale .

Arteta, whose press conference answers have been known to come with a significant pinch of salt, was asked whether Raya - brought in on the recommendation of Inaki Cana, who had already trodden the path from Brentford to Arsenal - was first choice.

‘In any position, no,' said Arteta. ‘We want two players per position.’

It soon became apparent, however, that if, in Arteta’s mind, all his goalkeepers were born equal, some were still more equal than others.

Raya sat on the bench for the first three Premier League games of the season, usurped Ramsdale to start the fourth and, bar the two matches against parent club Brentford during his loan spell, he hasn’t missed one since.

Two years on from his arrival, Raya has played more than 100 games for Arsenal, kept 45 clean sheets, won two Golden Gloves and has agreed a bumper new contract. Ramsdale, meanwhile, is playing second fiddle at Newcastle after being relegated with Southampton last season. No 1? In this position, yes. In the world? Quite possibly.

David Raya is Arsenal's undisputed No 1 and one of the finest goalkeepers in the world

Raya's shot-stopping has been superb, keeping out 73 per cent of the shots he’s faced in the league since the start of last term

SHOT-STOPPER SUPREME

In the old days, this was what a goalkeeper would be judged on. Keeping the ball out of the net. As Roy Keane would put it: his job.

So much of what makes Raya shine for Arsenal are the aspects of goalkeeping that have developed in the modern game: passing the ball, initiating attacks – and we’ll come to that – but he has also developed into a supreme shot-stopper during his time at Arsenal.

That Raya has kept so many clean sheets is, of course, impressive but he cannot take all the credit for that. He stands behind one of the best defences in the league and if the opposition don’t take any shots, you can’t concede any goals.

And since the start of last season, no Premier League team outside the promoted and relegated sides have faced fewer shots than Arsenal.

When an opponent does manage to get an effort away, however, Raya is a brick wall. He’s saved 73 per cent of the shots he’s faced in the league since the start of last term, the most of any keeper to play at least 10 matches. This season, he’s keeping out 83 per cent. No wonder Arsenal have the best defensive record in the league and have conceded only three times in all competitions this campaign.

Save percentage on its own can be misleading. It treats all shots equally, whether they are 40-yard pot shots or tap-ins, nestling into the corner or straight at the keeper. A shot is a shot, a save is a save.

What’s more instructive is to look at how many goals Raya has realistically prevented with those saves. Of the three league goals conceded this term, the first was a ridiculous free-kick from Dominik Szoboszlai against Liverpool, the second a neat finish from a counter-attack by Erling Haaland and the third a header from six yards by Newcastle’s Nick Woltemade. Raya would not, according to stats gurus who track this sort of thing, have been reasonably expected to stop any of those shots.

Football’s data revolution means the number bods can now work out how many goals keepers should have saved or conceded based on the quality of the shots they have faced.

When you compare those numbers, at least in recent times, Raya rises high again. Since the end of November, only Everton’s Jordan Pickford (7.4) and Forest’s Matz Sels (7.1) have 'prevented' more goals than expected than Raya (4.1) from the shots on their goal.

Raya isn’t the tallest – coaches doubted he’d even reach 6ft when he trialled with Blackburn as a 16-year-old (he is now that height) – but is blessed with great agility, shown famously in his remarkable double save against Atalanta, first from the penalty spot and then the rebound, in September last year. Or how he got low to his left to deny Matheus Cunha against Manchester United in the season opener in August.

It’s not always been this way. Raya struggled in the early part of his Arsenal career. The sight of Ross Barkley’s shot going straight through him in an error-strewn performance in Arsenal’s thrilling 4-3 win at Luton Town in December 2023 threatened to live long in the memory.

Raya pulled off an amazing double save in last season's Champions League, twice denying Mateo Retegui of Atalanta

'I was hammered when I brought him in,’ joked Arteta recently. ‘I know this country and I know what I was doing.’ Because, in truth, it was not Raya's shot-stopping that drew Arteta to him, but how good he was on the ball.

THE 11TH OUTFIELDER

So legend has it, once Arteta watched Ramsdale pass the ball straight to the opposition inside 30 seconds against Southampton as Arsenal’s title-challenge fell away in April 2023, he knew he needed a keeper who could pass.

Raya wanted to play outfield as a youngster and honed his technical skills on a futsal pitch, just a two-minute walk from his childhood home in Barcelona.

In many ways, Arteta wanted Raya to play as an outfielder too. He wanted someone who could start attacks, who could play splitting balls between opposition attackers into midfield and who could step up into the defensive line as an extra centre back when Arsenal have the ball, to give the Gunners a man advantage against high-pressing opponents.

And Raya has been key to that. Since the start of last season, no Premier League goalkeeper has been as involved in as many sequences of possession in open play that have ended in a shot. No keeper has started those passages of play more frequently than the Arsenal man. He’s always involved, and he’s often the one who starts it all.

He regularly does this from deep inside his own penalty area. For a team whose manager is often criticised for not taking enough risks, he certainly asks his goalkeeper to take some.

Raya goes long against Manchester City at the Emirates. His kicking has become a key part of the way Arsenal build attacks

Mikel Arteta wanted a goalkeeper who could start attacks, who could play splitting balls between opposition attackers into midfield. In Raya he has that

Raya frequently holds on to the ball to coax opponents to press him and only then plays the pass either to his full back or into midfield.

In the early stages of Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Manchester City last month, Raya received the ball inside his own box and stood with it for more than 10 seconds, only passing to Declan Rice once Erling Haaland had moved towards him. Raya received the ball back from Rice and waited another 10 seconds before moving it on again.

Raya holds on to the ball for over 10 seconds against Manchester City last month, to bait their press into action

Raya does this a lot. He’ll stand stock still with his studs on the ball. He often feints to pass one way, then stops again, tempts his man towards him and then moves it on.

He has much more confidence doing so now, compared to his fourth league start against City two years earlier, when he flapped at an early corner that required a team-mate to clear the ball off the line and then dallied too long on the ball, was closed down by Julian Alvarez and was very nearly charged down into his own net.

It was at that early stage of Raya's Arsenal career where every single misstep was met by the cameras turning to Ramsdale on the bench, and after the Alvarez near-miss, Gary Neville chimed in: 'I can spot a keeper a mile off that's a nervous wreck - and there's one right in front of you. He's not got a picture at all (of what he wants to do), he's not sharp enough, and he's very lucky.'

Raya now has that picture, and the confidence. He is stepping up into the back line less frequently this season, content to receive the ball deeper, and build from there – both short and long. For all the risks, he has not made an error leading to an opposition goal since April 2024.

The areas of the pitch were Raya took touches in open play last season...

...and his numbers this term, showing how he is stepping up into the back line less frequently and dictating play heavily from deep inside his own area

MIKEL’S QUARTERBACK

The reason Raya is so key to Arsenal’s play is the variety to his passing. He can go short to his full back or into midfield but he has the capability to ping the ball long when the team want to mix it up.

As Jurgen Klopp once said after a particularly expansive passing display from Raya at Brentford in 2021: 'Their goalie should have No 10 on his back with the balls he played.'

The longer passes are coming more often now as Arteta shifts a little towards the Premier League’s new trend of direct play, with a pacy forward in Viktor Gyokeres now leading the line and new wingers Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke looking to drive at defences.

But the variety is crucial, which you can see when you look at Raya’s pass map in the Premier League this season.

Raya has attempted a real range of passes this season, going long when needed (successful passes coloured, unsuccessful attempts greyed out)

Raya is much more direct from goal-kicks. He’s launched nearly 90 per cent of this season's goal-kicks further than 40 yards. Only the keepers of the three promoted teams do so more regularly. Any excuse to get Bukayo Saka on the ball early.

BOSSING HIS BOX

For a goalkeeper who is ‘only’ 6ft tall, Raya has a phenomenal command of his area. Since those flappy early days against the likes of Luton and City, Raya has taken charge of his 18-yard box.

Raya punches clear under pressure from Newcastle's legion of giants in the crucial 2-1 win at St James' Park last month

He’s stopped more than 90 per cent of the crosses that have come into his area, either by claiming them or punching them away from danger.

Since Raya's move to Arsenal, only 6ft 5in Emiliano Martinez has caught balls into his box more often. And, once Raya does, he springs the attack again – often not with his feet but with his pin-point throws.

Against United, he leapt to catch a Bruno Fernandes corner, immediately raced to the edge of his box and rolled the ball into the path of Martin Odegaard, taking out three United players and starting a counter-attack.

Simply put, he has no real weaknesses. He commands his area. He builds from the back. He hits the front. He doesn’t make costly errors. He even keeps the ball out of the net. No wonder he’s the No 1.