The goalkeeping position has constantly made headlines at Arsenal in recent years.
Most of the attention has centred around the situation involving David Raya and Aaron Ramsdale, which divided opinion among supporters for months.
However, even before that, there was another complicated goalkeeper situation brewing behind the scenes at Arsenal.
Bernd Leno was once the club’s undisputed number one, but things eventually became tense before his departure.
Maty Ryan, who spent time on loan at Arsenal, has now revealed what was really going on.
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Maty Ryan says Arsenal coaches didn’t want to play Bernd Leno
Leno was Arsenal’s first-choice goalkeeper when Mikel Arteta initially took charge of the club.
The German was an outstanding shot stopper and saved Arsenal on countless occasions during difficult periods.
However, there were always question marks about his ability with the ball at his feet.
As Arteta transformed Arsenal into a possession-based side that built from the back, it became clear that Leno no longer suited the system.
That was widely viewed as the main reason why Arsenal eventually moved on from him.
Ryan, however, has now revealed there was more going on behind the scenes than people realised at the time.
The Australian claims Arsenal’s coaching staff privately admitted they actually preferred selecting him on footballing merit. However, they were concerned about the impact dropping Leno could have on the dressing room during a crucial stage of the season.
Ryan told Flashscore: “I actually could have had a couple more (opportunities), but I got sick one game prior to that, and they didn’t play me after this.
“And also, in the situation at the end with Bernd, there was a little bit of tension between the coaching staff and him, and they actually said to me on a few occasions, ‘If it was just down to the football, we’d be selecting you, but Bernd still has another contract, you’re on loan for the minute and we don’t wanna cause a problem in the change room or nothing, because we’re competing for European football at the end of the season,’ and so that’s how it played out.”
Arsenal will soon have another goalkeeping dilemma
Goalkeeper debates are clearly nothing new at Arsenal, and another one could soon emerge.
David Raya will almost certainly remain the club’s first-choice goalkeeper next season after another impressive campaign.
However, there are serious questions to answer regarding who should be his deputy moving forward.
Kepa Arrizabalaga’s disastrous display in the Carabao Cup final exposed the need for an upgrade in that position.
Arsenal cannot afford to have such a drop-off in quality behind Raya, especially with the number of games they now play every season.
It will be interesting to see which goalkeeper Andrea Berta targets in the summer transfer window.
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