Aaron Ramsdale has admitted he was shocked by Arsenal fans’ reception of him on Wednesday, with his new supporters chanting his name.
The former Sheffield United goalkeeper made his Arsenal debut in last night’s 6-0 EFL Cup win away to West Bromwich Albion.
Ramsdale sealed a £30 million switch to the Gunners last week following weeks – if not months – of speculation.
His arrival didn’t go down well with a lot of fans of the North London club in the belief that their hierarchy were paying over the odds for him, having been relegated from the Premier League with the Blades last term.
But the travelling fans belted out Ramsdale’s name throughout the game against the Baggies.
And the man himself has admitted that he really didn’t expect such a warm welcome.
He told the club’s official website: “Yeah, [it was] special. I wasn’t expecting the reception I got, so a big thanks to the fans for that. A packed away end on a Wednesday night in the second round of the Carabao Cup shows the passion that the supports have and we put on a good performance for them. As debuts go, it’s one of the better ones.”
Number two
Despite the clean sheet, Ramsdale will remain as Mikel Arteta’s number two for now.
Bernd Leno is hardly an Alisson Becker-type but the German did have a solid game against Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium last weekend.
The former Bayer Leverkusen star has the gloves right now but one mistake – and Leno is quite prone to them – and Arteta will be tempted to introduce the Englishman.
Arsenal go in search of a first Premier League victory this weekend with a trip to Premier League champions Manchester City.
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