David Raya saves Arsenal at Atalanta, Mikel Arteta’s reaction & changes vs Man City
Take a bow David Raya.
That double save to deny Mateo Retegui on Thursday night, first from the penalty spot and then from the rebound, was truly remarkable.
And it is the sole reason why Arsenal returned back to London with a point from their opening Champions League fixture of the new campaign following a 0-0 draw at Atalanta.
Mikel Arteta’s side were awful in Bergamo, certainly in an attacking sense anyway.
After a decent opening 15 minutes they offered next to nothing going forward. It was scrappy, slow and uninspiring.
But ultimately a point at Atalanta is a decent result.
It certainly could have been worse and it would have been had it not been for Raya, who continues to enjoy a stunning start to the season.
“I witnessed two of the best saves I have probably seen in my career to save us in that moment,” Arteta said after the game, when asked about Raya’s double save. “He kept us in the game, that’s the reality.
“Last year he was already very important but this season he has started exceptionally. I don’t know if he’s the best in the world but he’s been exceptional for us, that’s for sure.”
Exceptional is the right word to use when describing Raya’s performances so far this season.
He was great last season, after that initial nervy spell when he first came into the side.
But I always felt we wouldn’t see the best of him until Aaron Ramsdale left. That situation was not helping either keeper and it’s no surprise to me to see Raya flourishing now he is the undisputed top dog at the club in terms of the goalkeeping department.
Speaking in his post match interviews, Arteta accepted that his side had been way under par in Italy.
Offensively they were miles off it, with the attackers struggling to get into the game at all.
There was no fluency going forward and the performance will do little to quell the fears of those who worry where the creativity will come from in the absence of the injured Martin Odegaard.
The most worrying aspect of the performance though was how easily Arsenal surrendered possession. They just couldn’t keep the ball at all.
“We lost control of the game because we were very inconsistent with the ball,” Arteta admitted.
“Defensively we didn’t suffer, that’s the reality. We had a late chance with Martinelli to win the game but unfortunately it didn’t go in. We have to improve.”
Big saves. Big moments.
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 19, 2024
A performance to be proud of, David 👏 pic.twitter.com/d06uUnzGJK
They definitely will have to improve this weekend if they want to get something from Manchester City.
Arteta will be well aware that his side can’t be as sloppy at the Etihad as they were in Bergamo because if they are, City will punish them.
Personally, I’d be playing Jorginho in midfield on Sunday. I really think Arsenal need him in this game to try and get a bit more control of the ball.
I’d also be very tempted to move Kai Havertz back up top so that he could try and hold the ball up a bit and bring the wingers into the play.
That just didn’t happen with Gabriel Jesus as the focal point against Atalanta. The Brazilian had a really poor night, but he wasn’t alone in that.
The back four and goalkeeper aside, it was a really poor night for Arsenal performance wise. But the result was not a bad one and I suppose that is the most important thing.
There are certainly plenty of things for Arteta to now ponder over the next couple of days and I’m sure he will come up with a decent plan to try and make things work this weekend.
And even if things don’t click at the Etihad, you just know that with Raya and the Arsenal defence around, you’ve still always got a chance of picking up some sort of a result.