Football 
Tennis 
Horse Racing Mikael Silvestre on Ramsdale vs Raya: Arsenal need to establish a clear hierarchy
Arsenal have already completed one signing to reinforce their defence, while another one seems to be close to joining The Gunners. Former Arsenal defender Mikael Silvestre shares his thoughts on the new members of the Arsenal squad.
Arsenal announced the Dutch defender Jurrien Timber, who arrived from Ajax Amsterdam, and the expectations are sky-high for the versatile defender, who will offer competition to an already well-functioning Arsenal defence.
Another player who could end up at Arsenal is Brentford goalkeeper David Raya, who has been on a lot of top clubs’ radars this season. However, it now looks like he has decided to join The Gunners.
We talked to Mikael Silvestre, who talked us through his expectations of these two players and elaborated on where this leaves the Polish centre-back Jakub Kiwior.
In this article:
Competition is healthy but a clear hierarchy is necessary
Silvestre makes it very clear that Arsenal should establish a clear hierarchy quite fast, as the number one goalkeeper needs to have full confidence in his spot, even though he adds that competition is healthy.
“When it comes to goalkeepers, you have to establish a clear hierarchy because the No. 1 needs to be in full confidence that it is his spot”, says Silvestre and continues:
“But, competition needs to be there. Otherwise, it’s too easy. So, yeah, it’s up to Arsenal to decide whether Ramsdale or Raya will be No. 1.”
“But you want healthy competition. That’s the most important, especially with the goalkeepers, because they form a team within a team. They always train together; they challenge each other, they serve each other in training. So it is important you have a good atmosphere.”
Silvestre continues by saying that it won’t be nice for the goalkeeper who ends up sitting on the bench as both of the players are used to being the starting goalkeeper for a Premier League club.
“It looks like one of the starting goalkeepers will be sitting on the bench. Wouldn’t be nice for the one sitting on the bench because when you play in the Premier League, you don’t want to sit on the bench suddenly from one season to the other.”
“Arsenal is back in the Champions League, challenging for the Premier League. They’ll have the FA Cup in the second part of the season. It is important to have a high level at every position.”
“Sometimes you can have an understudy, but it is important to have competition at each position.”
Earlier this week, we highlighted the prospect of Arsenal clinching the title in our Premier League ante-post 2023/24 betting preview. If you think David Raya’s presence raises Arsenal towards the category of title-clinching, it may be worth a read.
Timber is a blessing – Kiwior is expected to push the starting CB´s
Jurrien Timber has played both as a right back and a left back during the pre-season, while we all know that he can play very well at the centre back as well, which will be a blessing for Mikel Arteta, according to Silvestre.
“He has the attributes to play across the back four which is a blessing for the manager, and for him, it means more game as there will be someone underperforming or they’ll need a rest. He can jump in and play.”
“He’s a real modern defender, which is rare to be able to play across the back four.”
While Jurrien Timber is expected to start a lot of matches, the situation isn’t quite the same for Jakub Kiwior, who will have to continue pushing Gabriel and Saliba. However, he will get his chance during the season, says Silvestre.
“Kiwior has to continue pushing because he’s done well when he came up towards the end of the season.”
“I would still expect Gabriel and Saliba to partner. The one thing with CBs is you don’t normally rotate them too much, so his game time won’t be huge, but again, suspensions, injuries, you have to be ready.”
“So, I think Kiwior will play enough and have opportunities because of the amount of games.”
RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING
At bettingexpert, we always take a responsible approach to gambling. We’ll never bet more than we can afford or chase losses. For more advice, head to our Responsible Gambling hub.
