2 PL clubs set to battle for Arsenal wantaway star: Reports
Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale is reportedly on Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers' radars. The English shot-stopper wants out of the Emirates after falling down Mikel Arteta's pecking order.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reports that Ramsdale is ready to leave the Gunners before the transfer window closes. His club want a sale and have chosen Espanyol's Spanish goalkeeper Joan Garcia as his replacement.
Arsenal have agreed personal terms with Garcia and will swoop for him if Ramsdale leaves. The England international lost his No.1 role to David Raya last season and has failed to reclaim it.
Ramsdale, 25, made just six Premier League appearances last season, keeping two clean sheets. Two of those outings were against Brentford, Raya's parent club, before the Gunners triggered the £25 million buy option this summer.
It has been a frustrating period at the Emirates for Ramsdale as he had been No.1 until Raya arrived. He arrived from Sheffield United in August 2021 and made 89 appearances. He was named in the 2022-23 Premier League Team of the Season.
Ramsdale admitted last season that he was concerned about his situation at Arsenal due to a lack of game time. He worried about his international future as a result of reduced minutes at club level.
"You need a quality back-up" - Jeff Stelling questioned Arsenal's handling of Aaron Ramsdale
Former Sky Sports presenter Jeff Stelling gave his take on Ramsdale's situation and stressed that the former Bournemouth goalkeeper had done nothing wrong. He highlighted the need for top competing clubs to have quality backup shot-stoppers (via The Sun):
"He has done nothing wrong. He is a good goalkeeper and we all accept that. He deserves and he is good enough to be playing in the Premier League for a decent side."
Stelling added:
"He has been linked with Wolves, I get that completely. The question for Arsenal is you can’t go into a season just having a number one goalkeeper, you need a quality back-up as well. Have they got that now? I honestly don’t know."
Arteta's decision to drop Ramsdale last season led to criticism because of his 2022-23 campaign performances. He kept 14 clean sheets in 38 league games, and some felt he deserved to continue as the north Londoners' No.1.
Raya, 28, won many over last season with several eye-catching displays including in the UEFA Champions League. The Spaniard was the hero as Arteta's men beat 4-2 on penalties (1-1 aggregate draw) in the last 16.