David Raya made his Arsenal debut at the expense of Aaron Ramsdale against Everton (Picture: Getty)
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink fears Aaron Ramsdale is set for an extended period out of the Arsenal starting XI after he was benched for Sunday’s game against Everton.
The England international had been a Premier League ever present dating back to March of last year but was forced to watch on from the bench as summer signing David Raya made his debut at Goodison Park.
In truth, Ramsdale had done little wrong over the course of the opening four games of the season, but having sanctioned the decision to bring in such an established goalkeeper, Hasselbaink felt it was inevitable the former Brentford man would get his chance eventually.
‘They paid a lot for Raya and I think he’s their No.1 and eventually he was going to play, I think today is the first day that he’ll be a regular,’ the former Chelsea striker told Sky Sports.
‘I don’t see goalkeepers getting minutes here and there, they need rhythm, they need to stay in that momentum.
Aaron Ramsdale was dropped to the bench for Sunday’s game against Everton (Picture: Getty)
‘Raya is a very good goalkeeper and Aaron is as well, two big goalkeepers you want in your team. It’s hard and a difficult decision but I think we’ll see Raya in Arsenal’s team for a little while.’
Ramsdale has regularly overcome adversity throughout his career having endured back-to-back relegations with Bournemouth and Sheffield United and former Arsenal star Theo Walcott expects the 25-year-old to react positively to this latest setback.
He said: ‘I think it’s a really interesting point you say about the fixture pile-up but I’m a big fan of Aaron.
‘I think you got to look at England’s perspective as well. It will be interesting to see how he reacts, he’s had to deal with a couple of relegations but this is something else.
‘He’s at a very team, he’s got No.1 on his shirt there and now he’s got a keeper challenging him. They’re going to buy him in time and it’s very interesting. I’m sure he can deal with it.’
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