Brentford goalkeeper coach Manu Sotelo has hailed Arsenal’s David Raya as one of the best he’s worked with, admitting they knew they couldn’t keep him at the club.
The Brentford goalkeeper coach has been speaking to Faro de Vigo about his career to date and working with Raya during his time at the club.
He’s been with Brentford since 2020, which meant he worked with Raya for the majority of his time at the club, with the Spanish goalkeeper joining the previous year.
He arrived in a €3.35m deal from Blackburn Rovers and went on to establish himself as the number one at the club, making 161 appearances in total and keeping 54 clean sheets in them.
Rather than his shot stopping ability, it was his talent with the ball at his feet that truly made him stand out for Brentford, though, with former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp once likening him to a midfielder after another dominant display.
That ability to play out from the back saw Arsenal come calling last summer, initially signing Raya on loan in a deal that is expected to be made permanent.
He’s impressed for the Gunners this season, quickly replacing Aaron Ramsdale as number one and keeping 20 clean sheets in 41 games in all competitions this season.
Sotelo is not surprised to see him shining at the Emirates and admits the Arsenal goalkeeper is one of the best he’s worked with.
“David’s thing is not a surprise, because I know how he competes,” he said.
“He is the smartest goalkeeper I was with, anything you said to him he said he was going to try and do it in the next game.
“He has brutal ambition, intelligence and an incredible way of training. He dominates all game situations and is a leader.
“We knew it was going to be very difficult to retain him.”
