‘What I love about David Raya…’ – Joe Hart amazed by Arsenal star after ‘unbelievable’ moment in win vs Chelsea
Joe Hart was left in awe of David Raya’s performance as Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
The Gunners are locked in a nervy title race with Manchester City, and their latest three points on home turf extended their lead back to five points at the top of the Premier League table.
Goals from William Saliba and Jurrien Timber saw Arsenal cancel out Piero Hincapie’s own goal on the stroke of half-time, as their set-piece prowess came to the fore yet again.
Mikel Arteta’s side have now won back-to-back games after their late slip up against Wolves, but Hart was keen to praise the role that their goalkeeper played in their latest victory.
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Joe Hart in awe of ‘meticulous’ David Raya
Raya has played a key role in Arsenal’s success so far this season, as he has back-stopped the league’s tightest defence to help concede just 22 goals from their opening 29 league games.
He may not have been able to add to his eye-catching tally of 13 clean sheets on Sunday night, but he still played a crucial role in helping his team get over the line.
The Spaniard made four huge saves during the win over Chelsea, not least in stoppage time, when he was at full stretch to turn Alejandro Garnacho’s cross-shot from the left wing out for a corner.
It was a moment that left former Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart gushing during his analysis on Match of the Day on Sunday night, and he was keen to praise the way that the Arsenal star prepares on the training pitch.
“What I love about Raya is that he’s so disciplined and he’s so meticulous,” the former England international said.
“His willingness to be in the right position to make the big saves is just a culmination of all the hard work that he is doing.
“Garnacho cuts in and he’s a dangerous player. Raya is in an excellent position, and Garnacho goes for that corridor of uncertainty. Raya is in a perfect position; no one touches it, he flies through the air, and it was an unbelievable save.”
Stats show Arsenal may have underlying issue with Raya
Raya has worked excellently alongside Arsenal’s well-drilled back four so far this term, but there is still one element of his game that might be causing a little concern for Arteta.
The Gunners’ defensive unit protect each other so well that they are regularly able to mop up when a teammate makes an error, but that is often not the case for Raya as the last line of defence.
| Stats | Raya Total | PL Rank |
| Clean Sheets | 13 | 1st |
| Save Percentage | 67.2% | 11th |
| Saves per 90 | 1.6 | 20th |
| Goals Prevented | -1.9 | =11th |
| Goals Conceded per 90 | 0.8 | =1st |
While his clean sheet stats have been hugely impressive so far in 2025-26, his save percentage and his goals prevented tally are a little eye-catching, and for the wrong reasons.
The former Brentford gloveman has prevented -1.9 goals so far this term, meaning that he has effectively conceded almost two goals more than he should have done.
That total is only good enough for the 12th best tally across all Premier League ‘keepers, and it is a similar story when it comes to his save percentage.
Raya is currently only keeping out 67.2 per cent of the shots that are fired at his goal, the 11th best total across the division.
Mikel Arteta will not be explicitly worried about this at the moment, but he will be aware that his defence must remain as strong and sturdy as ever in order to provide an extra line of protection.