As Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard continue to star for Arsenal in midfield, former Liverpool star Jamie Carragher has named David Raya as the Gunners’ most important player.
Carragher made the claim about Raya while reflecting on Arsenal’s win against Sunderland on Monday Night Football on Sky Sports.
Arsenal beat Sunderland 2-0 away from home at the Stadium of Light in the Premier League on Saturday.
Bruno Guimaraes and Bukayo Saka scored the goals for the Premier League champions against the Black Cats, who ended the game with 10 men after Reinildo Mandava was sent off in the sixth minute of injury time.
Just minutes before Guimaraes scored for Arsenal in the second half, goalkeeper Raya stopped Sunderland from going ahead from the penalty spot.
Arsenal defender Ezri Konsa was adjudged to have pulled down Dan Ballard inside the Gunners’ box.
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Enzo Le Fee took the spot kick, but Raya kept it out with a superb save low to his left.
After the game, Arteta said about Raya’s save: “Unbelievable.
“He’s a player that decides matches when we need it.”
Jamie Carragher wowed by Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya
Former Liverpool defender Carragher has now described Raya as Arsenal’s most important player, even though Odegaard is back to his creative best and fellow midfielder Rice continues to shine in the middle of the park.
Carragher said about Raya on Monday Night Football on Sky Sports (7:15pm, September 14, 2026): “I think he is amazing.
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“I think you could definitely make an argument that he is Arsenal’s most important player.
“I honestly think he’s that good.
“I think he was outstanding last season, the same now.”
Carragher has also given his verdict on whether Arsenal will find it easy to win the Premier League title for the second season in a row, as Manchester City beat Manchester United 1-0 in the Premier League on Sunday.
When asked if there has been a mentality shift at Arsenal, Carragher said: “Maybe and they’ve maybe got the best squad now as well.
“You look at Bruno Guimaraes coming off the bench and making that impact, they didn’t have that player last season.
“Yeah, I think the psychological impact [of winning the title] will be huge for Arsenal.
“They won’t have that worry they’ve had of getting across the line.
“They know they can, they’ll feel they’re the best team and the best squad.
‘But I think what City did yesterday will be a little bit of a worry for Arsenal: ‘Oh, we know who our challenger is right now!’”
Carragher added: “Manchester City have had a more difficult start and it was almost good for the league.
“I know Manchester United fans won’t want to hear that.
“I think there will be a worry that as soon as Arsenal get some sort of a gap, whether that’s two, three, four points, that it’s going to be very difficult for anybody to claw them back.
“So City are still in there with them and they’ve made a great start.”
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