Arsenal have sprung a surprise in the transfer market this morning by signing a new goalkeeper. As discussed on the Fresh Arsenal Podcast, it felt like Mikel Arteta was confident of bringing in a new keeper soon judging by his recent comments, and he has done just that.
Arsenal’s Icelandic keeper Alex Runarsson has failed to impress since joining in the summer and after a string of worrying performances, Arsenal have had to actively look in the market for a new player to provide competition to Bernd Leno. On Friday afternoon, the club confirmed the signing of Brighton stopper Mat Ryan, a player Fresh Arsenal identified as a possible target earlier this week.
Ryan was registered in time to be part of Arsenal’s FA Cup squad that will travel to Southampton for tomorrow’s 12:15 kick off. Considering the amount of time Leno has played in recent weeks, it could be that Ryan immediately makes his way into the starting eleven.
Ryan has joined the club on an initial 6 month loan deal and after falling to third in the pecking order at Brighton, he will be desperate to impress and earn a full time contract with Arsenal.
The 28-year-old has had impressive Premier League performances for Brighton and will want to become a first choice keeper again, or play in the cup games for a team like Arsenal. The Gunners may in the summer look instead for a homegrown alternative to sign permanently, for example David Raya from Brentford. Having a homegrown second choice keeper would open the door for another non-HG player to fit into the squad.
Ryan could be one of a number of changes for Arsenal tomorrow, as Mikel Arteta will be conscious of keeping his squad fresh at a time where the games just keep coming. The likes of Willian, Eddie Nketiah, Nicolas Pepe and Dani Ceballos are amongst those with chances of coming into the team and you would expect Gabriel Magalhaes to come back in.