Arsenal have been busy sorting contracts over the past year.
Bukayo Saka, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes have all signed renewals, while Jurrien Timber and Declan Rice are understood to be close to finalising new long-term deals.
Football.London also report that Martin Odegaard’s representatives have been in positive discussions with the club over an extension.
Arsenal have been quick to tie down their most important players. One name, however, has yet to be addressed in the same way.
David Raya is entering the final two years of his contract. He has just come off the best season of his career, having won the Premier League Golden Glove for the third consecutive season.
Arsenal fans…if David Raya isn’t Arsenal’s best Premier League goalkeeper ever, then who is?
There’s an argument to be made that he was Arsenal’s best player last season.
He may be 30 now, but in goalkeeping terms, that’s the peak of your powers.
Arsenal’s next contract renewal should be David Raya
BBC Sport reported last year that Raya was quietly rewarded with a pay rise to reflect his growing importance to the team.
That wasn’t a traditional extension, just an adjustment to his current deal.
A similar approach was taken with Leandro Trossard too, which ultimately proved vindicated as he played a vital role in ending the 22-year wait for a Premier League title, before his departure to Besiktas.
Arsenal may be understandably cautious about handing massive, five-year commitments to players crossing into their thirties. That is a reasonable position.
But Raya is a different case. He has won the Golden Glove in every season since becoming Arsenal’s goalkeeper. He is widely considered among the best, if not the best, goalkeeper in the world right now.
TRUE or FALSE: David Raya is the best goalkeeper in the world…
Raya could head into next summer with just 12 months left on his deal. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Europe’s other heavyweights would have every reason to start making enquiries.
Arsenal shouldn’t let a player of Raya’s calibre and importance drift into that territory.
Saka, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber, Rice — all sorted or close to being sorted. Raya belongs in that exact same conversation. He should be next.
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