{"id":122116,"date":"2023-11-22T10:49:44","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T10:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/11\/22\/arsenal-keeper-too-good-to-be-a-number-two-says-david-seaman\/"},"modified":"2023-11-22T10:49:44","modified_gmt":"2023-11-22T10:49:44","slug":"arsenal-keeper-too-good-to-be-a-number-two-says-david-seaman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/11\/22\/arsenal-keeper-too-good-to-be-a-number-two-says-david-seaman\/","title":{"rendered":"Arsenal keeper too good to be a number two, says David Seaman"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Raya (left) has played the past eight Premier League games and four Champions League matches
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Aaron Ramsdale \u201cis too good to be a number two\u201d for Arsenal, says former Gunners goalkeeper David Seaman.<\/p>\n

Ramsdale has been competing with David Raya since the Brentford keeper\u2019s loan move to north London in the summer.<\/p>\n

Spain\u2019s Raya has been favoured in the Premier League by Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, making eight appearances to Ramsdale\u2019s four.<\/p>\n

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Ramsdale, 25, was an unused substitute in England\u2019s final Euro 2024 qualifier in North Macedonia on Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he\u2019s not playing [for Arsenal], it\u2019s going to affect his [England] chances,\u201d Seaman, who has an informal coaching role at the Gunners, told BBC Radio 5 Live.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoing into next summer, where Aaron is really pushing to become England goalkeeper \u2013 he needs to be playing.\u201d<\/p>\n

England manager Gareth Southgate has said he could not \u201cpromise\u201d him a place in the Euro 2024 finals squad if he remained on the bench.<\/p>\n

Ramsdale is likely to start against Brentford on Saturday with Premier League rules preventing Raya from playing against his parent club.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Aaron goes in at the weekend, then he\u2019s left out for the next game, then we know who Mikel\u2019s number one is,\u201d added Seaman, who won three league titles in 13 years at the Gunners.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not good for Aaron. He\u2019s a top-class goalkeeper, there\u2019s no doubt about that.\u201d\"Aaron<\/p>\n

The former Bournemouth and Sheffield United keeper \u2013 who played every league game last season \u2013 has featured seven times for Arsenal in 2023-24, including the Carabao Cup and Community Shield.<\/p>\n

Ramsdale\u2019s most recent top-flight outing was the 3-1 win against Manchester United on 3 September. He has since been limited to two Carabao Cup appearances.<\/p>\n

Raya has been selected for Arsenal\u2019s four Champions League matches to date.<\/p>\n

Arteta has told Ramsdale\u00a0not to rush any decisions about his future\u00a0while his father, Nick Ramsdale,\u00a0recently said his son had \u201clost his smile\u201d\u00a0since losing his place to Raya.<\/p>\n

Former England keeper Seaman does not think Ramsdale will be on the move in the upcoming window despite his current situation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think January will be a bit too soon [for a move away],\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the game after this weekend, that\u2019s where we will find a lot of answers. From what Mikel was saying when he brought Raya in, when he talked about rotating goalkeepers in games, which I still found a bit bizarre, we\u2019ll have to wait and see after this game.<\/p>\n

\u201cAaron\u2019s too good to be a number two, that is for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Third-placed Arsenal travel to Brentford at 17:30 GMT on Saturday.<\/p>\n

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