Arsenal’s Raya voted Player of the Matchweek
Arsenal’s David Raya has been voted Player of the Matchweek for Matchweek 36, becoming the first goalkeeper to win the award.
In Arsenal’s 1-0 victory at West Ham United on Sunday, Raya made a magnificent save at 0-0 to deny Hammers midfielder Mateus Fernandes from close range.
It was a huge save for Arsenal that not only changed the course of the match but also the title race, as shortly after the Gunners scored the eventual winner through winger Leandro Trossard to go five points clear of Manchester City.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta referred to the stop as a “magic moment”, and it also contributed to Raya’s 18th clean sheet of the season, meaning he won the Coca-Cola Premier League Golden Glove award for the third consecutive campaign.
Watch Raya’s Matchweek 36 highlights
Raya topped our fan poll for the first time, while it’s the fifth time the award has been won by an Arsenal player, after successes for Eberechi Eze, Trossard, Declan Rice and Viktor Gyokeres.
Raya picked up 55 per cent of the fan vote for Matchweek 36, while his closest challenger, Man City winger Jeremy Doku, had 20 per cent. Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky was marginally behind Doku on 18 per cent.
The other nominees this week were Everton centre-back James Tarkowski (four per cent) and Brighton & Hove Albion left-back Maxim De Cuyper (three per cent).