Chopping and changing never works, in the early days of Given & Harper together at Newcastle in late 90s there wasn’t much to pick between them , both were good keepers (though Given couldnt kick beyond the half way like) until Given got a run in the team and really cemented his place and became a much better keeper

My man over here using big club bias (which does exist, mention Liverpool or United and you get clicks) instead of noticing that Ramsdale is English and in that title chasing Arsenal side could have pushed Pickford out of the No.1 spot just before the Euros.

if Ramsdale played for Wales I can guarantee nobody would be talking about it this much.

Further Arsenal spent a fair amount of money on a relegated keeper who came in and not only did well but became a big presence in a title chasing team.

The situation at Brighton doesn’t have the same factors and therefore lacks flair.

Big clubs stories will always get more attention but that doesn’t mean that it’s just an excuse to have a pop at arsenal. Arteta claimed that he would be using 2 number 1s and rotating when in fact he was dropping ramsdale for raya. If he’d said that at first there would be so much less drama.

Also ramsdale is English and was a fan favourite last seaosn. He was talked about as a potential England number 1 and now he’s number 2 for his club. That’s always going to genesate more interests and gossip.

Joe Hart

Who’d have thought that replacing England’s number one at the time at club level would be a bigger story than brighton’s keepers. It’s not as if the same media stories went around with Pickford before… right?

Who’d have thought that the English media would write more stories about the bigger reputation players playing for the national English team…

Calm down your Arsenal victim mentality… they’re not having a pop at Arsenal, it’s obviously bigger news. Just as pickford’s form was before that.

If it’s because Arsenal are a far bigger club so it’s more of a story then that shows they don’t really give a shit about the situation, they just want to have a pop at Arsenal as usual.

Yawn, this shit again?

The funny part is the implication that both Raya and Ramsdale are #1 goalkeeper-level.

Now Arsenal are in a situation where they’ve dropped one guy for another guy who has already shown he needs to be upgraded on before they’ve even made the mandatory purchase for the guy.

Ugh not this rubbish again.

To start, I reject the premise of the question because neither Raya nor Ramsdale are capable of being a #1 keeper at the highest-level.

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Nope. Steele, Verbruggen and De Zerbi at Brighton.

No shit Sherlock.

If you’d bothered to watch Brighton at all this season you’d know he’s been switching keepers regularly from game to game, presumably to ensure the right match-ups with each player’s skill set and the match-specific tactics.

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neither of them being able to keep a single clean sheet this season which shows it’s obviously hampering the team.

Again, if you’d bothered to watch Brighton at all this season you’d know they have a relatively weak defence, compounded by how half their team has been sold to other clubs and their current attacking style and formation (with entirely new players) leave them vulnerable defensively.

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So why has this been made such a big deal out of when Brighton quite literally have and use two number 1 goalkeepers to their detriment and no one has said a word?

Because Arteta made it a big deal for no reason.

De Zerbi is just doing what Klopp did for a period with Mignolet and Karius years ago.

Arteta lied that he would do the same, then screwed over Ramsdale for Raya and tried to gaslight everyone about it, triggering a media shitstorm which has now extended to commentary from Ramsdale’s dad.

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If it’s because Arsenal are a far bigger club so it’s more of a story then that shows they don’t really give a shit about the situation, they just want to have a pop at Arsenal as usual.

Christ, the victim mentality from Arsenal fans knows no bounds.

It’s nothing to do with the club itself and having “a pop at Arsenal”, it’s everything to do with the behaviour and words of the lying dickhead you’ve currently got as a manager.

raya sucks, ramsdale is better

Because Ramsdale was just given a huge contract and assurances he was their man moving forward.

Simple reasons why the specific situation is in the narrative.

1. Arsenal are a big club and therefore we tend to stay in the narrative.
2. Ramsdale is English. If he was foreign it would barely be discussed.

I think it’s made a big deal out of it because:

(1) It’s Arsenal, big 6 club just naturally get more attention.

(2) Ramsdale appeared to have really settled at Arsenal, and appeared to have a solid (although not necessarily great) season.

(3) They paid quite a bit for Ramsdale, it was seen by many as a mistake at the time. This fee is largely because he’s homegrown and is capable of starting. When you’re signing a home-grown player, you usually pay big with the intention of starting them most games (e.g. Declan Rice), or you go cheap/free rotation option (e.g. Young at Everton). They spent serious money on Ramsdale, which normally indicates he’s going to start unless you sell him.

(4) He just signed a new contract. Ramsdale is stuck there unless Arsenal are happy with the money offered. There’s no chance he signed that thinking he isn’t 1st team goalie, he surely can’t be too happy.

(5) Raya - stats wise - did better than Ramsdale last season. However, when it comes to ‘the eye test’, to the average fan you wouldn’t consider him a huge improvement on Ramsdale. Given Ramsdale proved he can play at this level, replacing him is a big risk to squad dynamics, especially the improvement Raya offers isn’t night and day.

(6) Cara made the point that clubs that rotate goalies in the league, usually do so in situations where neither goalie is particularly great. If you had a properly good goalie, he’d start most games, and the 2nd goalie would either accept his place or quickly leave to get playing time.

I didn’t think you were talking about Ramsdale, Raya and Arteta because none of that first paragraph applies to them…

Arsenal situation is not the same as Brighton’s. Ramsdale was the set #1 after being bought quite recently for €28m and 25yrs old. He’s also part of the England squad.

Steele was a free transfer, broke through as a 2nd GK, 33yrs old and not near the England set up. Brighton’s model is based around young players, so sharing time with Verbruggen (a 21 yr old prospect from the Belgian league) is probably not unexpected or controversial in the slightest.

If having 2 goalkeepers is to Brighton’s detriment, at least it comes with a long term plan. Arsenal’s situation is unstable and comments from Ramsdale’s father make it a better story for the media. This isn’t just a “everyone wants to have a pop at Arsenal” moment.

I mean people just like making headlines from this shit and bashing Arteta for his weird ideas, especially if they don’t go quite as planned. But I still stand with his decision, why shouldn’t a goalkeeper be like any other position on the field. If it’s about “trust” that the defenders build with their number two as some say… Well, what’s the point of having any number two keeper if you cannot trust him anyway.

Verbruggen, is sort of their new future home so I think they’re easing him in. Plus from what I heard he has it in his contract that he gets very big bonuses by being on the bench.