DAVID RAYA may not have been in a Champions League final if it was not for an unfortunate red-a*** injury or a National League goalkeeper suffering from Bell’s palsy.
Team-mates, coaches and the man who signed Raya for Brentford tell JattvibeSport his story from over the years…
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David Raya is preparing for the Champions League final Credit: Getty
The Spaniard has been in sensational form this season Credit: Getty
DANIEL LLOYD-WESTON, Goalkeeper, Southport
“They brought David in after I got Bell’s palsy. He was a young lad, really chirpy, really nice, an enjoyable character to be around. There was no kind of shyness about him.
“He wasn’t overbearing or anything, he was a normal, affable, nice bloke. He came in and he was just brilliant.
“I’m 6ft 1in, he’s shorter than me. Normally when you go further down the leagues, the physicality of the football down that level really is a lot more. Further down the leagues, there’s more physicality. You’ve just got size difference.
“You might not have lads who are the fittest in the world, but they are more than happy to put a foot in.
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“David didn’t have that physicality, but what he had was ridiculously good agility. If a cross came in, he would get there before any player.
“I was once told that, because of my height, you’ll never play higher than the bottom end of League One, League Two, at best.
“Yet you look at Raya, who’s only just six foot. He’s that quick and that agile that what he lacks in height, his physical capability makes up for.
“Him coming to Southport was his first taste of men’s football. You’ve got to understand this is a pressure zone now.
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Raya earned his stripes on loan at non-league Southport Credit: Reuters
“This is where careers live or die and other people’s jobs are on stake down the line. But he took it on so well, he was brilliant.
“He had that temperament while also possessing the physical abilities that he had. Looking at him and judging from the outside, I imagine he could slow time down.”
JOHN KEELEY, goalkeeping coach, Blackburn
“He came up and trained with the first team, we had Paul Robinson there and Jake Kean and Simon Eastwood, Jason Steele.
“As time went by everyone just started going: ‘F***ing hell, he’s decent.’ He just kept getting better and better.
“He got a loan to Southport and I used to go with him. The game that really turned his life around was a Cup game against Derby.
“He had an absolute worldie. When I watched Match of the Day it was unbelievable.
“He never cheated on one thing. He did everything and if he couldn’t do it it’d slowly take the next day to do a bit more. He’s totally dedicated to it.
“I believed straight away he could be Spain’s No1 I wish I’d put a bet on that.
“It was just one thing at a time with him. Then he actually got to play in the first team. We played at Leeds and we trained on Friday morning and we had a bit of a couple of injuries.
“We were warming up and then we were playing two-touch and Simon Eastwood always lost. We played red-a*** for the loser.
“Someone’s tonked it really hard and it hit the back of his hamstring and then it put him out of the game! “Gary Bowyer didn’t want to risk Steele and said let’s play David.
“We didn’t tell him until pre-match. In the first three or four minutes he made an unbelievable save which gave him the confidence. “After four or five minutes in the game he’s now taking free-kicks on the half-way line.
We won, we beat Leeds 4-0 and he carried on playing from there.”
Raya excelled as he made his way at Blackburn Credit: PA:Press Association
John Keeley worked with Raya at Blackburn Rovers Credit: Getty
LEE DYKES, Technical director, Brentford
“It wasn’t an obvious deal to do, because you’re always going to look at maybe a lack of height as an issue, which many clubs did.
“Actually, when I was doing the reference check-in from people I knew that worked with him, they also referenced that maybe he could go and play top six LaLiga, but they questioned Premier League potential.
“Whereas our goalkeeper coach, Inaki Cana, who is now at Arsenal, was absolutely drilled down on him being a Premier League player.
“It is how we do things at Brentford, we listen heavily to the specialist.
“We knew what we were signing, but we also knew that height wasn’t an issue because he was so agile and he could jump.
“I am absolutely not surprised and I think he’s one of the best in the world right now.
“He asks questions, he watches footage himself, he analyses his own game.
He’s very critical of himself and just desperate to be the best. That’s not in every player.
“Generally, these types of characters go to the very top. When we signed him, we were signing the potential and we thought we had a really good goalkeeper that could go and play in the Premier League.
“Once he was in the building, we were very sure he would be a Premier League player. Then it was just a case of how high he would go in the Premier League.
“I was surprised that there was only Arsenal at the table when he was clearly available. We had a little bit of a sniff from Tottenham but David made it clear that it was going to be Arsenal.
“There were some complications around the Arsenal deal in terms of they were trying to do it in a certain way. Obviously, it was done initially on a loan because of some financial things on their side.
“Credit to Phil Giles and Matt Benham. They helped David and Arsenal get that deal done. Not many clubs would have allowed a player to go on loan to make the deal happen.
“They waited to see if they could get other interest. I’m sure other interest would have come eventually.
“David Raya, world class, if not the best in the world, big shout for me. A big reason why Arsenal are competing for two massive trophies.
“Arsenal have got a world-class goalkeeper for many, many years to come.”
Raya established himself as a Prem keeper at Brentford Credit: Getty
MARTIN ODEGAARD, captain, Arsenal
“He’s so important for us and it’s great to have a character like him at the back for us as well.
“He’s a leader in the dressing room for sure. He’s a guy who talks a lot and takes a lot of responsibility for the team. He helps me out a lot in terms of being a big part of the leadership group. He’s a great character to have around.
“Everyone can see his quality on the pitch but he brings a lot to the team and to the group. He’s really grown in that role and stature since he arrived here.
“When you look at our team, there are a lot of different leaders, and David is someone who does a lot of work behind the scenes. He talks a lot and he really cares about people and getting the best out of everyone.
“He’s a really big part of the group and a really strong leader.”
Martin Odegaard has played alongside Raya at Arsenal for several years Credit: Getty
