Arsenal have made plenty of brilliant additions to the club this year.
The likes of Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke, Viktor Gyokeres, and Eberechi Eze, for example, have all significantly strengthened Mikel Arteta’s first team.
However, the powers that be have also made some excellent off-the-pitch additions, most notably new Sporting Director Andera Berta.
The Italian helped oversee the impressive summer transfer window and has done incredibly well on the contract front, and now he appears to be ensuring a first-team star is getting a deal reflective of his importance, a star who Gary Neville once lambasted.
Berta's contract magic at Arsenal
The first bit of business Berta got done after being appointed Arsenal’s new Sporting Director was tying the monstrous Gabriel Magalhães down to a new long-term contract.
First Impressions
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The Brazilian titan put pen to paper on a new four-year deal in early June that saw his weekly wage increase to £150k, and while that is an enormous sum of money, he’s more than worth it, having helped the club produce the best defence for two seasons running, and potentially a third this year.
Not long after the former LOSC Lille ace agreed to new terms, Hale End gem Myles Lewis-Skelly was putting pen to paper a long-term deal of his own, one that runs until 2030, and is fully deserved after a breakout season that saw him make 39 first-team appearances, including ten in the Champions League, and two against Real Madrid.
The next renewal came a couple of months later, when, after plenty of speculation, most of which seems to have been unfounded, Ethan Nwaneri followed his fellow academy graduate by agreeing a five-year deal with the club.
The 18-year-old didn’t play as many minutes as the full-back last season, but he still made 37 appearances, and more importantly, scored nine goals and provided two assists, which for a teenager is incredibly impressive.
Appearances
37
Minutes
1378′
Goals
9
Assists
2
Goal Involvements per Match
0.29
Minutes per Goal Involvement
125.27′
Finally, the most recent contract extension Berta has overseen is that of William Saliba.
Arguably the most important of the lot, the French centre-back is regarded by many as one of the best in the world and has been consistently linked with a move to Real Madrid over the last couple of years.
With him and Gabriel at the back, there is no reason the Gunners can’t aim to win every competition they take part in.
Interestingly, while there have been four contract extensions, two players have simply seen their pay increase; Leandro Trossard and someone who’s gone from a potential problem to world-class.
The Arsenal ace who is now "the best in the world"
Like Trossard in the summer, David Raya has reportedly been handed a pay rise by Arsenal, and based on his performances over the last two years, it would be hard to say he doesn’t deserve it.
However, while he is now practically undroppable and one of the most important players in Arteta’s squad, that hasn’t always been the case.
For example, when he was initially signed on loan from Brentford in the summer of 2023, pundits and fans alike were somewhat bewildered by the move, if not outright dismissive, as Aaron Ramsdale was the club’s number one at that point.
Former keeper turned pundit Shay Given didn’t hold back in his assessment of the move, claiming the manager was “signing a problem.”
However, it soon became clear that the Spaniard would be the club’s new number one going forward, but that didn’t stop the criticism whenever he made a mistake or looked a little shaky.
For example, in the home game against Manchester City that October, Neville slammed the Barcelona-born shot-stopper, claiming, “I can spot a goalkeeper a mile off who is a nervous wreck, and David Raya is that at the moment.”
Fortunately, Arteta took little notice of the outside noise, and eventually the Bees’ former keeper settled into life at the Emirates and went from a possible problem to someone who has kept the North Londoners in a number of games over the years.
Moreover, he won the Golden Glove in his first season and repeated the feat last season, and he looks likely to do the same again this year, as in seven games, he has conceded just three goals.
On top of that, FBref rank the 30-year-old in the top 3% of keepers in the Premier League for save percentage per 90, so his excellent clean sheet record is not just down to the players in front of him.
With all that in mind, it is pretty difficult to disagree with Sky Sports’ Dougie Critchley that the Gunners’ unreal number one is now “in the conversation for the best in the world.”
Ultimately, while an extra year or two would have been perfect, Raya fully deserves his pay rise, and so long as he keeps playing the way he is, he may have a Premier League title to go along with a third set of golden gloves come May.