25-year-old Arsenal player set to start ahead of £30m rival for national team tonight

Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale is set to start for England tonight and will replace Everton’s Jordan Pickford against Scotland.

That’s according to the MailOnline who shared the report this morning.

And this will no doubt be a huge boost for Ramsdale who is now in a serious fight for the number one spot at club and country.

Gareth Southgate has made it clear that he won’t make changes for the sake of it in tonight’s friendly.

And therefore this report that Ramsdale is likely to start is a big show of confidence.

England fans will still expect £30m Pickford to be the nation’s number one moving forward, but this is a big opportunity for Arsenal’s Ramsdale.

The report also claims that Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips is hopeful of replacing Jordan Henderson in the starting eleven.

Of course, Ramsdale isn’t just vying for a starting role with England right now.

The arrival of David Raya at Arsenal has sparked fresh uncertainty about his position moving forwards.

Mikel Arteta seems very keen to see how both Raya and Ramsdale cope and react with a genuine challenge for the number one spot.

Arsenal’s Ramsdale set to start for England tonight

Ramsdale wasn’t previously being challenged by Matt Turner, the now Nottingham Forest number one.

And much like his competition with England’s Pickford, it seems Ramsdale will now have to battle for his Arsenal spot game by game.

Arsenal fans have been worried that this will cause unnecessary stress for the keeper who’s a real fan favourite at this point.

However, Arteta will be quick to point out that this level of competition is standard at a truly elite team.

Arteta’s side is already drawing so many parallels to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, something that is inevitable if a side wants to reach the top.

And Ramsdale will surely now be hoping that strong England performance against local rivals Scotland will also help in his battle at Arsenal.