'Raya has gone to a different level' – Arteta hails impact of Arsenal goalkeeper

Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya has "gone to a different level" this season as they look to win their first trophy since 2020.

The Gunners will look to extend their lead at the Premier League summit when they host Sunderland on Saturday, while they progressed to the EFL Cup final during the week after defeating Chelsea 4-2 on aggregate.

Raya has kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the English top-flight this season (12), conceding just 17 goals (a league-best among goalkeepers to play more than 10 games) in his 24 appearances this term.

The Spanish goalkeeper also shared the Golden Glove award with Nottingham Forest's Matz Sels last season (13 clean sheets).

Arsenal still have a chance of lifting four trophies this season, and Arteta hailed the impact of Raya in their search for silverware.

"When we are where we are, it's because individuals are doing so well, and certainly David has been immense for us since he joined," said Arteta.

"This season again, I think he's gone to a different level, very stable, really, really consistent, and he's a key player for us."

Arteta's staff were also in the headlines following their win over Chelsea after Blues boss Liam Rosenior was unhappy with their actions in the pre-game warm-up.

Some Arsenal staff had gone into the Chelsea half during the warm-up, which Rosenior labelled as a lack of respect.

When asked about the incident, Arteta said: "I don't know, it's his opinion and, obviously, we respect everybody.

"At any point, if one of the staff members went through that, we apologise, and that's it.

"It's very common in football, especially with the keepers, because they have to kick long balls and all that stuff, so nothing there to comment."