‘I am suffering and hurting’: Aaron Ramsdale opens up on losing Arsenal place
Aaron Ramsdale says he is “suffering and hurting” at the loss of his status as Arsenal’s No 1 goalkeeper to David Raya as he opened up on the no-win nature of the scrutiny he has felt on the bench.
Ramsdale, overlooked by Gareth Southgate for England’s friendly win over Australia last Friday – the manager picked Crystal Palace’s Sam Johnstone – has had a camera trained on him during Arsenal games, showing his reactions to whatever Raya does.
When Raya saved well from Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson during last month’s north London derby, Ramsdale was shown applauding with his hands above his head, which drew a jokey comment from Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports.
The pundit said Ramsdale reminded him of “when someone loses the Oscar and they start clapping and smiling for the other person”, which brought the red mist down on Ramsdale’s father, Nick.
He tweeted that Carragher was a “disgrace,” urging him to “show some class, my lad has”.
Ramsdale started the season ahead of Raya, who Arsenal signed from Brentford in August on an initial loan.
But Mikel Arteta has selected Ramsdale only once since the September international break – against Brentford in the Carabao Cup.
“Because it’s one of the first times it’s happened with the situation, it has been difficult,” Ramsdale said, with regard to the attention on his reactions on the bench.
“There are times where you’re doing the right thing but it’s the wrong thing and if you don’t do it, it’s the wrong thing. So it’s a double-edged sword.
“There’s a lot … a lot of attention. It’s a position where it’s famously said if you’re not spoken about, it means you’ve done a good job.
"There’s a lot of talk at the minute. Whether it is me or David who plays we need to be able to just focus
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