Why Arsenal's David Raya is Spain's 'best goalkeeper' - but could be third choice at the World Cup

Premier League Golden Glove winner for a third consecutive season, among the nominees for Premier League player of the season, and on the verge of a momentous double with an Arsenal side founded on a watertight backline - yet David Raya may only be third choice for Spain at this summer's World Cup.

How to break that one down?

On pure strength of performances alone, it would be hard to look past Raya, especially given some of his spectacular interventions this season, none more so than at West Ham on May 10 when he denied Mateus Fernandes with what could prove to be the most decisive save of the 2025/26 Premier League season.

His case would appear to be solidified even further given Spain's first-choice keeper under boss Luis de la Fuente - Athletic Bilbao's Unai Simon - has conceded a mammoth 73 goals this term.

So will there be calls for Raya to be his country's first-choice gloveman at the World Cup, when Spain get underway against Cape Verde in Atlanta on June 15?

"Not from within Spain," says Phil Kitromilides, TNT Sports' Spanish football expert.

"I think there should be, there absolutely should be. I think Raya is probably the best Spanish goalkeeper at the moment, with Joan Garcia of Barcelona just behind him, maybe. But in terms of consistency this season, Raya has been difficult to beat.

"But I don't think he's going to be number one at the World Cup. I don't think there are even calls within Spain for him to be number one at the World Cup.

"Simon is Luis de la Fuente's guy. He has trusted him, he has backed him, and he won the [2024] European Championships with him.

"There are many, many calls within Spain for Joan Garcia, the Barcelona goalkeeper, to go to the World Cup, and potentially be number one.

"But, because David Raya is playing in the Premier League, a lot of people here in Spain aren't necessarily watching him week in, week out.

"They're not fully aware of just how good he's been, just how vital he's been for Arsenal's success this season.

"So there aren't calls for him to be starting at the World Cup, but there really should be given his level, and given the level of the other Spanish goalkeepers, particularly the number one, who is Unai Simon, who hasn't had his best season - but he [Simon] is going to start at the World Cup."

Looking at the performance of the three Spanish keepers in all competitions this term, it might yet be Garcia who gets the promotion to No. 1 for the World Cup, not Raya.

While Raya has benefitted from being part of a well-drilled, mean Arsenal defence, it is actually Garcia who comes out on top in the more isolated keeper metric of goals prevented, at 9.70 compared to Raya's 4.39.

Garcia's passing accuracy also dwarfs that of both Raya and Simon, even if he has made two errors leading to goals this term, more than either of his compatriots.

Spain's March friendlies didn't leave many clues, with Simon starting in the win over Serbia, while Raya came in for the draw with Egypt, before being replaced by Garcia just after the hour.

Perhaps, in times past, where Real Madrid and Barcelona connections dominated the Spain side, there might have been something to be said for club cohesion when considering who to choose as keeper, but, for Garcia, there is only centre-back Pau Cubarsi close to the starting XI, while for Raya there is Cristhian Mosquera, but the Arsenal utility defender isn't a likely starter at the World Cup.

All of which leaves De la Fuente with a pleasant problem, but seemingly one that will end with Arsenal fans scratching their heads - and Raya perhaps wondering what more he can do to engineer a way into his national XI.

Raya is threatening the record of four Premier League Golden Gloves held jointly by Petr Cech and Joe Hart, with the latter taking the award three times in succession between 2011 and 2013.

Hart outlined to TNT Sports what it is that makes Raya "elite".

He said: "It's the simple things with David Raya, for me.

"At the Premier League and Champions League level, the capabilities of the goalkeepers are frightening. They can all pull off the saves that make everyone put their hands on their heads.

"But what I love about Raya is his relentlessness, his small details, the way he plays the game.

"The eye-catching saves are excellent - Raya's capable of that - but it's everything else that he does in between.

"How on it he is when he's not on the ball, his focus, I see little bits of the way he trains, he gets everything out of himself.

"I think he's a great example to any young goalkeeper, that you get what you deserve, and he fully deserves to be right at the top of the pile at the moment."

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