Ian Wright says £30m Arsenal player’s passing was ridiculous in second half vs City

Add as preferred source on Google

Ian Wright has lauded the improvement David Raya made for Arsenal in their win over Manchester City, claiming that some of his distribution was unbelievable in the second-half.

Wright was speaking on Stick to Football after the Gunners made a real statement with Gabriel Martinelli scoring the only goal late on to move Mikel Arteta’s side ahead of the Cityzens in the Premier League table.

The performance of David Raya was one of the key talking points coming out of the game. The Spaniard actually had very little to do in terms of saves. But he certainly had an eventful afternoon.

He misplaced a couple of passes early on. And he did not look too convincing coming for crosses. He also gifted Julian Alvarez the opening goal.

Ian Wright praises the distribution of David Raya

But there is no question that the 28-year-old did improve as the game went on. He went from being the player Arsenal fans were most worried about to helping them get across the line.

And Ian Wright has suggested that he started to show more of what he is about as the game went on.

“I thought that he was very, very cool in the first-half. Yes, it was nervy. But he did what the manager wanted. Because second-half, some of his distribution was unbelievable, especially in the last 10 minutes of that game, the catching and the distribution was fantastic. We, as Arsenal fans, have to get used to the fact that he will take his time,” he told Stick to Football.

Second-half display may help explain Mikel Arteta’s thinking

There was clearly something Aaron Ramsdale was not doing. Few Arsenal fans would have put a new goalkeeper on their shopping list ahead of the summer. And barely anyone would have said that a new number one was required.

But Mikel Arteta clearly felt that he needed something else. And it does appear that Raya’s distribution is on another level – when he is playing well.

The £30 million man is now the first-choice, having played both of the Gunners’ Champions League games, as well as their Premier League clashes with Tottenham and Manchester City.

His first-half display would have hinted to many that Arteta made a major mistake. But clearly, Wright believes that Raya made up for that with his performance after the break.