Arsenal transfer for Raya confirmed as LOAN with £27m buyout
Suraj Radia
- 9 Aug 2023 19:47 BST
- 4 min read
Arsenal’s deal for David Raya has been revealed to be a loan with the option to buy, with the goalkeeper extending his contract at Brentford in the process.
The Gunners had agreed personal terms with Raya and were thought to be in negotiations over a £25 million deal that would rise to £30m, with Brentford looking to cash in on the Spaniard as he entered the final 12 months of his contract.
However, despite turning down a number of offers from Brentford, Raya has now signed an extension to his deal before heading to the Emirates after Arsenal agreed to pay a £3m loan fee for the 27-year-old.
REVEALED: Arsenal's next transfer priority after Raya deal
The option to buy is for £27m, according to The Athletic, while Fabrizio Romano has claimed the clause becomes automatically active after ‘a few games’, otherwise Arsenal will have the opportunity to meet the valuation next summer.
The deal is understood to be conducted with a loan-to-buy in order to facilitate the deal with Arsenal’s financial fair play restrictions, with the Gunners having spent more than £200m this summer, the most of any team in the world.
Raya is set to undergo a medical on Thursday and Arsenal are hoping to complete the move before their first game of the new Premier League season against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Raya set to contest for number one jersey with Aaron Ramsdale
Brentford had initially put a valuation of £40m on Raya after he made it clear he would not extend his contract with the club, and there was understood to be tentative interest from the likes of Manchester United, Tottenham and Bayern Munich.
The Bees, who had already signed Raya’s replacement in Dutch keeper Mark Flekken, were forced to lower their asking price, attracting the attention of Arsenal, who chose to make the shock move having held a long-standing interest in the ex-Blackburn man.
Arsenal had made Aaron Ramsdale the most expensive goalkeeper in the club’s history just two years ago when he signed from Sheffield United for £30m but the 25-year-old had a difficult end to last season, making a string of errors as the Gunners lost their grip on the Premier League title.
REACTION: How Ramsdale responded to Arsenal goalkeeper transfer
Ramsdale is still highly rated by Mikel Arteta but the England international will now face strong competition from Raya, who will link up with his former Brentford goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana.
