Arsenal are looking at a deal to sign David Raya from Brentford, though they’re yet to place a bid, according to reports.
On Sunday afternoon, David Ornstein broke the news on The Athletic that Arsenal are exploring a deal to sign David Raya from Brentford this summer.
The Gunners want Raya to compete with Aaron Ramsdale for a starting spot.
Arsenal haven’t yet submitted an offer, but they’ve made Brentford aware of their interest, and Raya prefers a move to Arsenal over the other interested party – Bayern Munich.
Bayern would prefer to loan Raya for the upcoming campaign, which wouldn’t suit the player or his club, given he’d have to extend his deal with Brentford first. The goalkeeper’s contract with Brentford is up in 2024.
James Benge confirms that if both sides agreed a deal with Brentford, Raya’s current preference would be to join Arsenal over Bayern, though he’s still assessing his options.
Fabrizio Romano also claims Raya prefers Arsenal, and that negotiations with Bayern are currently off after their loan offer was turned down.
Romano adds that the Gunners are set to bid soon, to accelerate transfer talks.
The Telegraph report that Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United were looking at Raya earlier this year, but they’ve both since moved for alternative targets.
Chelsea are also admirers of the goalkeeper and held informal talks this summer, but haven’t stepped up their interest.
Amid the current transfer speculation, Raya has been left out of the Brentford squad for their recent pre-season friendlies, including the game against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Brentford boss Thomas Frank said of the situation: “I hope [we get an offer], we are waiting to sell. David would like to go. That’s fine for us.
“If a club want to buy [him] they just need to find out the price. I guess it should be simple, but apparently, it’s very difficult!”
Raya made 39 appearances for Brentford last season, keeping 12 clean sheets.
The goalkeeper was heavily linked with a move to Arsenal in 2020, but he ended up extending his contract to 2024. With that deal now running down, it looks like the Spaniard might get a second chance to make the switch.