Arsenal have completed the loan signing of goalkeeper David Raya from London rivals Brentford, the club has announced.
The Spaniard joins the Gunners on a season-long loan move which costs an initial fee of £3 million with an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season for £27 million.
He joins the Gunner to provide competition to Aaron Ramdsdale, who has been the club’s number one goalkeeper for the last two seasons.
“I’m over the moon to be able to take this challenge in my career and make the step up,” Raya said.
“I’m really excited to get going and see how the season ends up. I spoke to the boss and he sent me the values of what Arsenal are about. The way that the club is going, it’s growing even more so it is a beautiful challenge to take and I couldn’t say no.
“I’ve seen Arsenal a lot for a lot of years and since [Mikel] came he’s made a massive difference to the style of play and to the club. The way the team plays out of the back, being confident and taking possession to the other team is the main thing why I fit into the team. I’m going to try and help as much as possible and we’ll see what happens.”
Ramsdale started all 38 Premier League games last season as Arsenal finished runners-up to Manchester City, but now he will have competition from Raya, who was one of the best goalkeepers in the league last term.
Raya becomes Arsenal’s fourth signing of the summer transfer window, following the arrival of Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jurriën Timber.
After joining from Blackburn Rovers in 2019, Raya played a key role in Brentford’s promotion to the Premier League in 2021 and was an ever-present player last season as they finished ninth in the top flight.
His performances earned him a first cap for Spain in 2022 and was named in his country’s squad for the World Cup in Qatar,
