The man with the golden gloves: Analysing David Raya’s best five saves of the season

No matter what happens in Arsenal’s final three Premier League matches, David Raya has earned at least a share of the division’s Golden Glove award for a third successive season.

Arsenal’s goalkeeper has kept 17 clean sheets in the 35 games so far. The only player who could match him is Manchester City’s Gianluigi Donnarumma, who is on 13 and has four league fixtures left, making it increasingly likely that Raya will be the outright winner for 2025-26. He would be just the fourth goalkeeper to receive the award three seasons in a row after Liverpool’s Pepe Reina (2006, 2007, 2008), and City’s pair of Joe Hart (2011, 2012, 2013) and Ederson (2020, 2021, 2022).

The numbers are startling.

The 17 clean sheets Raya has kept are already a season-best since he joined Arsenal in summer 2023. In his 105 Premier League appearances for the club, he has kept clean sheets in 46 of those matches (43.8 per cent).

“He’s been exceptional,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said ahead of the trip to West Ham United tomorrow (Sunday). “His level of consistency has been something that nobody expected. He has reached a level that is incredibly high and sometimes we take some of the things he does as normal, but they are not.

“He has responded in crucial moments. For the third consecutive season, to achieve that is remarkable.”

Raya’s efforts look like they could finally result in a Premier League title for Arsenal. He has often made critical saves when his side were level on the scoreboard or had a one-goal advantage, laying the platform for them to either extend their lead, see out a victory or avoid defeat.

With the help of our resident goalkeeping expert Matt Pyzdrowski, The Athletic breaks down five of the 30-year-old Spain international’s best saves this season, which could ultimately see Arsenal crowned champions for the first time since 2004.

1. Brighton (Home, 2-1 win, December 27)

This is arguably Raya’s best Premier League save of the season, and it was a vital one. It was late December, and Arsenal had dropped to second after a Manchester City win over Nottingham Forest earlier in the day, and this win helped push Arsenal back to the top of the league with a two-point cushion.

The save itself was made in the 76th minute, when Arsenal were leading 2-1 but had seen their lead halved 12 minutes earlier.

As Brighton combined around the edge of the box before slipping the ball in behind to Yankuba Minteh, Raya continuously scanned the space in front of him and made small adjustments to his positioning to stay connected to both the ball and the runners around him. Once Minteh made his approach, the intent and speed of the action made it clear to Raya that the Brighton winger was going to shoot. That became the trigger for his preparation.

Raya got set early and used a perfectly timed split-step, which allowed him to stay balanced and quickly drive his right foot into the ground to push explosively toward the ball. The body language of the attacker also helped him read the situation. Minteh’s open hips and angled approach gave an early indication of the likely trajectory of the shot, allowing him to react aggressively rather than late.

Raya landing after his split-step.

And driving his right leg forward to throw himself toward the ball.

The spectacular part of the save came from his technique. 

Raya correctly chose to go with his bottom hand rather than the upper one. Because the ball travelled away from him and rose toward the top corner instead of climbing up and over his shoulder, the bottom hand allowed him to fully extend and attack the shot on its natural line.

Raya expertly tipping the ball over the bar with his bottom hand.

In these situations, the bottom hand has a clear advantage because it matches the trajectory of the strike and often only requires a slight flex of the wrist or fingertips to guide the ball over the crossbar. 

When you see Minteh’s reaction afterwards, he is completely flabbergasted that he didn’t score, which tells you everything you need to know about this save’s difficulty level. Without doubt, one of Raya’s best of the season.

2. Nottingham Forest (Home, 3-0 win, September 13)

Arsenal were already 2-0 up when the ball inadvertently bounced off Chris Wood’s chest towards goal, but Raya’s reactions and agility helped him secure a third clean sheet in four matches to start the league season.

The save began with Raya’s positioning during the cutback phase. As the ball was delivered into the box toward Wood, he initially held a position a few yards off his line so he could impact both the cross and a potential shot on target.

As the delivery travelled in, Raya adjusted with two quick shuffle steps to stay balanced and connected to the ball.

The key movement for him came through the micro-step to his left, combined with the drop step back toward his line. That allowed him to quickly turn his chest and hips and attack the save from the correct angle, rather than being caught underneath the flight of the ball.

The technical detail that stood out most was the use of the top hand.

Unlike the above save against Brighton, the ball here travelled up and over Raya, making the top hand the correct choice because it naturally provided a longer reach while simultaneously allowing him to tilt his hips and shoulders, which became crucial here as he stretched to get the slightest touch to deflect it onto the bar.

The save looked instinctive, but technical details — the footwork, body rotation and hand selection — were what made the impossible possible.

3. Newcastle United (Home, 1-0 win, April 25)

This helped secure the first of two recent wins that have given Arsenal breathing space at the top of the table and highlighted Raya’s balance, reactivity and ability to reorganise his body against an unpredictable strike.

Sandro Tonali struck a knuckle-ball of a shot from over 30 yards, causing it to move initially toward Raya’s right before swerving back across his body midway through its flight. He first reacted toward his right, but crucially stayed balanced and never fully committed his weight in that direction.

That allowed him to quickly push off his outside leg (right) and redirect back across goal. 

The choice of technique and execution of the sweep save here was simply outstanding. By tucking his left leg underneath his body, almost simultaneously as he pushed off his right leg, and dropping sharply to his left, Raya was able to get down quickly despite his momentum initially travelling the opposite way, before extending a strong left hand to make the stop.

It was an extremely difficult adjustment to make in real time and a perfect example of how the constant focus on balance, redirection and reactive footwork in training directly translated into his ability to react in a match situation.

4. Chelsea (Home, 2-1 win, March 1)

Deep in added time, it seemed like Alejandro Garnacho’s deep cross was destined for the far corner, with Chelsea’s then manager Liam Rosenier ready to celebrate.

“My heart almost stopped,” Arteta joked. “But David’s hand was there to bring it back to life.”

The starting point of this save was Raya’s reading of the situation before the ball was even delivered, with Jurrien Timber blocking a shooting opportunity.

Unable to claim the cross because of the traffic ahead of him and the bounce of the ball, he repositioned himself deeper toward his goal line in anticipation of a potential redirection on target.

What stood out throughout the sequence was his balance. Raya remained active on his feet and fully connected to the play rather than becoming flat-footed or falling backwards as the ball travelled through the crowd.

Once the delivery bypassed the runners and continued toward the back post untouched, he reacted immediately by driving his left foot forcefully into the ground and using the power step to generate the necessary momentum and strength toward the ball.

The trailing right leg also became a key detail, helping Raya drive toward the ball and helping generate the power needed to fully extend and turn it around the post. 

In these situations, goalkeepers can often become trapped on their line and unable to react forward into the save, something Raya completely avoided here to put Arsenal five points clear.

5. Everton (Home, 2-0 win, March 14)

Another pivotal match in the title race, thanks to the late goals of Viktor Gyokeres and Max Dowman, but Arsenal needed their goalkeeper earlier in the day to ensure they would have the opportunity to go on and take the three points.

Stopping crosses has always been one of Raya’s strengths, and on this occasion, he did well to come through traffic, attack the ball decisively and win the first duel inside the six-yard box. Once the clearance dropped back toward the edge of the area, however, his focus immediately shifted from defending the cross to protecting the goal.

As the ball bounced around the box, Raya continuously adjusted his positioning to stay connected to it despite the number of bodies between himself and the impending shot.

Raya’s vision became partially obstructed by Martin Zubimendi’s outstretched leg as Beto let fly, which made it difficult to fully see the exact moment of contact. Because of that obstruction, Raya was still slightly in motion as the shot travelled toward goal, rather than being fully set.

Fortunately for Arsenal, his positioning and balance had already placed him in an excellent position to react. As the ball flashed through the bodies in front of him, Raya instinctively shot out his left leg at the final moment to make a tremendous save. 

The footwork, balance and reactions throughout the entire sequence were simply outstanding and preserved Arsenal’s clean sheet at a crucial moment in the match. With City drawing 1-1 with West Ham later that evening, Arsenal went nine points clear.

Raya only ranks 17th for total saves made in the Premier League this season, and 34th on a per-90-minutes basis (1.34). That will be down to Arsenal’s solid defence, which helped him keep a record eight consecutive clean sheets in all competitions earlier in the season, but being less busy than most goalkeepers means he must try harder to maintain his concentration.

There is still work to do to ensure that this Golden Glove will mean more to Raya and Arsenal than the previous two, but in his first season with the club’s No 1 jersey, he has continued to prove why Arteta made the controversial decision to sign him from Brentford.