Arsenal reportedly wanted to sign Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia to provide competition for David Raya.

Raya joined the club on loan from Brentford last season, and quickly won Aaron Ramsdale as the guardian of Mikel Arteta’s first choice. He ended the season with the Golden Glove Award, keeping more clean sheets than in the Premier League.

However, even so, Arsenal reportedly wanted to sign another Spanish goalkeeper who could provide competition for Raya, even though his form from last year also continued this season.

According to a report by Metro, Arsenal Chiefs held talks with representatives Joan Garcia in December when the first team was in Spain for the Champions League match against Girona.

Garcia has established herself as one of the best in La Liga, making 27 appearances for Espanyol this season, conceding 39 goals and keeping four clean sheets. This is an impressive number considering Espanyol ranks 15th out of 20 in La Liga.

The report said that Arsenal did not want to activate the Garcia release clause £ 21.4 million last summer, and vice versa chose to sign the Bournemouth Neto goalkeeper on loan status. However, when Neto returned to the south coast in the summer, Garcia had appeared as the top target to provide competition for Raya.

Does Arsenal need a new goalkeeper?

Seeing The Gunners currently have the highway in the back, it can be said that new guards are not needed for the Arteta side, and that they must focus on other positions in the summer transfer window.

Arsenal does have several young goalkeepers who can step into the role of reserves after Neto leaves, including Jack Porter who is 16 years old, which made Arsenal’s first appearance earlier this season in the Carabao Cup.

Porter started the game with people like Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri when the Gunners defeated Bolton Wanderers 5-1 in the third round of the Carabao Cup.

Click here to see Arsenal’s first team squad for the 2024/25 season.