David Raya's Arsenal impact summed up as Mikel Arteta's kids lap up viral save clips

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David Raya is breaking Premier League records and even thrilling Mikel Arteta ’s kids. Raya has already won his third consecutive Golden Glove trophy and has kept 18 clean sheets this season to underpin Arsenal ’s title challenge.

It is a fabulous story about Raya having to work his way up through non-league at Southport, win over the Arsenal fans because they loved his predecessor Aaron Ramsdale and then become a full Spain international.

This season, Raya has surpassed himself with some incredible stops - his tip-over against Brighton and also his point blank save from West Ham ’s Mateus Fernandes last Sunday - to become one of the best keepers in the world .

Gunners boss Arteta even revealed that his own kids have taken to showing him some mind-blowing viral clips of different angles of some of Raya’s saves.

Arteta said: “My kids showed it to me the other day - and with a close camera because normally we look with a wide angle camera. But with a close camera you can see the moments that he has produced, you can see they are incredible.

“It’s a lot of work from a lot of people and big credit to them and especially to David and now we have the three most important games. Hopefully we don’t have to see any of those saves because that will mean we could have done things better a bit earlier.”

Three years ago, Arsenal signed Raya on loan from Brentford and people questioned why they would bring him in to replace fan favourite Ramsdale.

There was a big backlash and it took time for Raya to win the fans over. But Arteta recalled that Arsenal first wanted the Spaniard to come in SIX YEARS ago and admitted they made an error to let Emiliano Martinez leave before sealing a deal for Raya.

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Arteta said: “Years before, especially when Emi [Martinez] left, that was the idea to bring him in at that moment. We let Emi go and then we couldn’t do it! First of all on the decision when we did it, when you are convinced about something and it wasn’t just me, it ws Inaki Cana, the goalkeeper coach, as well, Edu who was sporting director at the time to support the idea when we gave them all the elements.

“It helped them understand everything because it’s the club who has to support it. Then the player who has tremendous personality to fulfil the role that is demanded, it was demanded at that time when it was very, very difficult.

“Then obviously the quality that he has, the willingness that he has every single day to learn and to work and his work ethic, his mentality and his approach to every training session is outstanding and is phenomenal.

“When you have that, when you have a goalkeeping coach who is as demanding as him as well, then you have a team, which functions individually but also collectively to show what they can do then it’s a good mixture. What David has done for us in the past few years has been incredible.”

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It is made even more remarkable when you consider Raya’s journey. Born in Spain, he joined Blackburn as a teenager, was loaned to Southport and ended up at Brentford. He looks so different back in old pictures. But it also strengthened Raya’s mindset and determination which has turned him into a world class keeper who is one of the best with his feet.

Arteta added: “It’s incredible. His journey. It’s incredible the way he has matured, the way he had to earn things. I think that shows you his mentality now, it has to. It’s something that has been growing on him.

“When you have to really earn it and you value certain things it is a bit different not only for him but for his family, his friends, his agent and his parents. They all know how much you have to do to arrive here and how hard it is to maintain yourself at that level.”

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