Arsenal’s goalkeeper says the Champions League final defeat to PSG will never fully leave the squad, and he wants that pain to push them all the way this season.
David Raya was speaking after Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Slavia Prague, a night when his save kept the three points safe and when he also made a point of praising Viktor Gyökeres.
The Spaniard still feels May’s penalty shootout loss to PSG in Budapest, and he believes this Arsenal side are now capable of going one better in Europe.
What did Raya say about the PSG final?
He was honest about it. Raya said: “I think it is never going to be out of the system. I think it is something that is going to live with us, and hopefully we can win the Champions League to get that out of us. But it has to be in our veins. It has to be on us to make it better this year.”
That is a goalkeeper using a scar as fuel rather than hiding from it. It also explains his frustration with the second half in Prague, where he felt Arsenal got complacent in attack and let Slavia fight their way back into the game.
Raya on Gyökeres: “This performance is going to be really good for him”
Gyökeres scored one and set up Noni Madueke’s opener, and he now has eight goal involvements (five goals and three assists) in his last 10 starts in all competitions. Raya knows the Swede’s minutes have not always been what he wanted.
“Obviously it is not easy not playing, and not playing the minutes that you want,” Raya said. “But we have a very, very good squad, where everybody is available now, and this performance is going to be really good for him. It is going to give him a lot of confidence. We know how good he is in these types of games and with this type of football. We are really, really happy for him.”
The save that kept Slavia out
The win would not have happened without the 31-year-old. He missed out on the Yashin Trophy to his Spain team-mate Unai Simón, but his stop from Oskar Kubiak, scooping the header onto the post and away, was the moment the game turned on.
Raya would not take the credit alone. “It is not just me. As I have always said, it is 11 players defending very well and not giving too many chances. At the end of the day, it is a team effort. It is a team thing to keep as many clean sheets as we can, because it makes it easier for us to win games,” he said.
He added: “Belief is really important, but hard work [is, too]. I work very hard during the week to try and help the team as much as possible on these types of nights. It is just the belief that I have in myself, and the belief the staff, the goalie coach, has in me and the team. That gives you that extra edge and motivation to keep doing it every single week, and the consistency I have been playing with throughout the years is a key factor for us.”
A big hug for Saliba
William Saliba was back among the substitutes in Prague after his long lay-off, and Raya was delighted, even with Ezri Konsa and Gabriel Magalhães having done so well in his absence. Arteta had already explained why Saliba avoided surgery before the trip.
“I was so happy when I saw him back in training with us. I gave him a big hug just before the training started. I am really pleased for him. It was not an easy injury, and he played through it last season. We are just so happy to have him back,” Raya said.
Can Budapest become Arsenal’s motivation?
I think it already is. The best teams carry their worst nights with them, and Raya talking about it so openly tells you the dressing room hasn’t buried that final.
What I like most is the balance in what he said. He is hard on the second half in Prague, generous to Gyökeres and quick to share the credit for the clean sheets. With Saliba back and the keeper in this form, Arsenal have the base to go deep in Europe again. Whether they can finish what Budapest started is the question that will define their season.
