Long-range shots expose David Raya's weakness?

David Raya had long given the impression of being a particularly reliable goalkeeper in close-range situations. Against Brighton, another aspect of his game was exposed more clearly: his difficulty dealing with certain shots from outside the penalty area.

Arsenal’s first two goals conceded at the Amex came from distance. In the 31st minute, Pascal Groß opened the scoring with a shot from the edge of the penalty area, slightly to the right, with the ball ending up at the foot of the post. Just before half-time, Charalampos Kostoulas repeated the feat from around 25 metres, finding the bottom-left corner.

This trend does not concern Raya alone. According to Opta data, seven of the last 18 goals Arsenal have conceded in the Premier League have come from outside the penalty area. Brighton accentuated this trend by scoring two of their three goals with long-range efforts, directly testing the Spanish goalkeeper in this area.

Raya’s individual statistics also merit attention. Historical Premier League data indicates that 33 of the 160 goals he has conceded in the competition have come from outside the penalty area, representing 20.6%. This figure alone is not enough to establish that it is a specific weakness of the goalkeeper, particularly without comparing him with the other goalkeepers in the league. Nevertheless, it shows that long-range shots account for a significant share of the goals he has conceded in the Premier League.

Read also: Premier League: David Raya wins the Golden Glove for the third consecutive time.

Raya was not beaten solely in this area, however. The Spanish goalkeeper made several important saves against Brighton, notably from a Kostoulas shot early in the match and in a one-on-one situation with Matt O’Riley late in the game. The third goal, headed in by Chema Andrés from a corner, resulted from a different defensive situation.

Three goals conceded, a first since January

This match also brought an end to a lengthy period during which David Raya had not conceded three goals in the same match.

The last time was on 25 January 2026, when Arsenal hosted Manchester United in the Premier League. Arsenal lost 3-2, with the Spanish goalkeeper conceding three goals. Since that match, Raya had not conceded three goals in the same game before finding himself in that situation against Brighton, nearly eight months later.

Brighton therefore scored three goals to inflict Arsenal’s first defeat of the season. Two of those goals came from outside the penalty area, a detail that raises a specific question about David Raya: could opponents look to test him from distance more often?

Nouya M'toama

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Versatile journalist specializing in sports and political news, with extensive experience across radio, print and digital media platforms.

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