Thierry Henry suggests £27m player may actually be Arsenal’s best this season

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There’s been a lot of talk on social media about Declan Rice’s claim to player of the season, but Thierry Henry thinks David Raya deserves to be in contention.

Several Arsenal players could consider themselves to be in the running for the player of the season award, with Rice an obvious contender.

Gabriel Magalhaes has been untouchable this campaign and could give the midfielder a run for his money, but we mustn’t forget about Raya.

Thierry Henry just reminded us of that when reacting to Arsenal’s Champions League win over Bayer Leverkusen on CBS Sports.

• READ MORE: The Arsenal stat against Bayer Leverkusen that silences every critic this season

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Thierry Henry thinks David Raya could be player of the season

At the end of Arsenal’s round of 16 second-leg win over Leverkusen, Raya produced yet another stellar save, adding to his huge collection this season.

The Spaniard has been so good, consistently stepping up to offer Arsenal safety between the sticks, and his contribution hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Commenting on Raya on CBS, Henry said, “I think this guy should be in contention to be player of the season.”

Given the consistency of the likes of Rice and Gabriel, it’s easy to forget how reliable Raya has been throughout the course of the 2025/26 calendar.

In 40 appearances in all competitions, the goalkeeper has kept 21 clean sheets, not conceding in 52% of the Gunners’ games he’s appeared in this season.

To contextualise how impressive that is, Raya has almost kept as many clean sheets as he has goals he’s conceded, only letting in 25 thus far.

Raya could end a 30-year Premier League wait

The numbers make Henry’s shout a very valid one, but even with Raya’s form in mind, it’s difficult to imagine him as the player of the season recipient.

That’s because the award rarely favours goalkeepers, seeing only one shot-stopper win the Premier League player of the year award since it was founded in 1994/95.

You’d have to rewind 30 years to revisit the last time a goalkeeper won the prize, as Peter Schmeichel was crowned player of the year.

Regardless of individual prizes, Raya has had a tremendous season thus far and won’t be thinking about any silverware aside from the four trophies Arsenal are still fighting for.