Bernd Leno frustrated Nuno Tavares as Arsenal beat Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup with a trait that likely helped Aaron Ramsdale become the first-choice, per football.london.
The Gunners paid Sheffield United £24m rising to £30m with add-ons for Ramsdale in the summer. He was expected to come in and serve as Leno’s back-up, but has already taken over as the number one. A clear sign of that came in Leno starting the EFL Cup affair.
Ramsdale, meanwhile, made a somewhat surprise Arsenal debut exiting the international break against Norwich City earlier this month. He retained the gloves for last weekend’s win over Burnley, and will likely start the north London derby against Tottenham.
Mikel Arteta gave Leno his chance to prove a point as he made changes to the Arsenal line-up on Wednesday. The German was rarely at fault for the goals the Gunners had conceded during his Premier League outings. But a trait that had stuck with Arteta frustrated Tavares.
Leno angered Tavares when he played a safe ball out to Rob Holding rather than find the charging Arsenal defender. Tavares had darted up the field after Leno collected a high cross, only for the German to overlook him.
Tavares had plenty of space behind Wimbledon’s right-back, but Leno hesitated and rolled a risk-free ball to Holding instead. The Gunners’ £7m summer signing from Benfica reacted angrily by throwing his hands into the air in dismay.
Leno’s hesitant and safe style of playing out from the back had already stuck with manager Arteta. The Spaniard is encouraging a more daring style at the Emirates Stadium, and the goalkeeper’s risk-averse nature was likely one of the reasons behind Ramsdale taking over.
Leno wasted opportunity to impress Arteta in Arsenal cup win
Leno almost had the night off on Wednesday as Arsenal beat Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup. Yet, ultimately, wasted a chance to impress Arteta, and potentially regain the number one spot from Ramsdale, by frustrating the likes of Tavares with his style of play.
Arteta will have been watching how Leno performed closely to see if dropping the goalie saw him change his approach. But he stuck to his safe style – even against a League One opponent – when chances to be aggressive were there.
Arteta would likely have shared Tavares’ frustration when Leno overlooked playing the ball to the Arsenal defender. He likely thought: ‘If the 29-year-old is not willing to take risks against Wimbledon, then when will he?’
The £100k-a-week shot-stopper will likely now have to wait until the Gunners face Leeds in the Last 16 of the EFL Cup for his next chance to impress. While Ramsdale may have faced – and impressed against – Tottenham, Brighton, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa beforehand.
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