Arsenal are reportedly viewing Aston Villa goalkeeper Zion Suzuki as a long-term successor to David Raya, after a talkSPORT pundit claimed the £30m summer signing is already the better keeper.
It is the kind of debate that flares up after one off-day. David Raya is still widely rated as the best goalkeeper in England after playing a key role in Arsenal winning the Premier League title last season, but his rare poor display in the 3-0 defeat to Brighton earlier this season has given rivals an opening.
Now the argument has landed at a sensitive moment, with reports suggesting the Gunners have been looking at who could eventually follow the Spaniard between the sticks.
David Raya told Zion Suzuki is “miles better”
talkSPORT presenter Adrian Durham has argued that Aston Villa summer signing Suzuki is superior to Raya. Suzuki arrived at Villa to be Emiliano Martinez’s long-term replacement and has caught the eye with his form.
“Lazy people will say Arsenal’s David Raya is the best goalkeeper,” Durham said on talkSPORT. “People who watch football will say Zion Suzuki at Aston Villa, who was also probably the best goalkeeper at the World Cup. Now I can hear Arsenal fans crying right now, dry your eyes!”
Durham then took aim at the way Raya’s saves are celebrated. “People bang on about his spectacular saves, when you break them down, are they actually that good?” he asked, picking out the stop Raya made from Estevao’s left-footed shot when Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1. “David Raya tipped it over and everybody’s going ‘Ooh’ and everybody’s going ‘Aah’. It was like they’re at some sort of magic show.”
Why Zion Suzuki is rated so highly at Aston Villa
Durham pointed to Suzuki’s weekend as proof. “Suzuki makes incredible save after save after save to keep Villa at 0-0 [against Tottenham] at the weekend and they go on to win the game,” he said.
The Villa keeper’s physical profile also features heavily in the praise. “He’s 6ft 3in, he’s a proper bulky presence, brilliant frame for a goalkeeper. His distribution off both feet, pinpoint, any distance, absolutely phenomenal,” Durham added, before signing off with a jibe: “So about time people stop banging on about David Raya, the Spanish Jordan Pickford.”
Are Arsenal planning for life after David Raya?
The more interesting part for Gooners is what sits behind the punditry. According to reports, internal discussions at Arsenal are understood to include the possibility of eventually bringing in the Villa goalkeeper once the situation evolves.
Any move would not be immediate. Raya remains under contract for a number of years and is the first-choice for the foreseeable future, so this is being framed as succession planning rather than an imminent change. We covered the Spaniard’s own future recently in Arteta’s beach joke settles it, and nothing suggests that has shifted.
Villa are also not a stranger to doing business with the Gunners, as our look at the Martinelli talks with Aston Villa showed.
Author opinion
One pundit’s hot take is not a transfer target, and Villa will not be selling a keeper they signed this summer to a title rival any time soon. But goalkeepers are long-term business, and Arsenal planning years ahead for the most important position behind the back four is exactly what a title-winning club should be doing. For now, Raya is the number one, and one bad afternoon at Brighton does not change that.
