Arsenal Giving David Ospina Raw Deal

Arsenal have a goal-keeping kingpin in Petr Cech. He is going to start into the foreseeable future. But don’t we feel just a tad bit bad for David Ospina?

When you think of how to grade goal keepers, it might not always be so easy to deduce. You could go by saves, but not every keeper faces the same number of shots. You could go by goals surrendered, but not all keepers have the same defense. There really is no foolproof way to judge a keeper except to watch them for yourself.

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However, there is one stat that gives us a pretty good indication of a keepers quality: Saves per goal. In case that is not descriptive enough, saves per goal is the amount of saves a keeper makes per goal surrendered. Last year, there was only one keeper in the five major European Leagues that had a higher saves per goal than David Ospina did at Arsenal. That man was Claudio Bravo of Barcelona, who tallied 3.47 saves per goal to Ospina’s 3.18 (via Squawka.com). 

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That is something. Ospina had his flaws, sure, but he was a great keeper for Arsenal at a time when Wojciech Szczesny just could not keep those pesky cigarettes out of his mouth.

Then, in the summer, Arsene Wenger made his only transfer right as the window opened and signed one of the best keepers in the world in Petr Cech. Just like that, Ospina was fighting an unwinnable battle. He had duties in lesser competitions, but after Arsenal was eliminated from the Capital One Cup and after his Olympiakos fiasco, Ospina could very well see his time at Arsenal ended.

And there is really nothing he can do about it. Speaking of saves per goal, Petr Cech is currently rocking a 3.80. While we’re on the topic of Claudio Bravo, he only has a 3.67 as is.

David Ospina may find some action in the FA Cup but with how seriously Arsenal is going to take it, that is no guarantee.

Arsenal really have given David Ospina a raw deal. He saved the team from the Polish goal-keeping enigma and was promptly replaced. He had one bad game and he was forgotten. It is actually very reminiscent of Szczesny, who was replaced on New Years last season by David Ospina after some rather silly mistakes against Southampton. Now the Pole is on loan at Roma. Say what you will about Arsene Wenger, but he takes his goal keeping seriously.

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In light of all that has happened and the raw deal that has been handed David Ospina, he can’t even really be that mad about it, nor can we really feel that bad for him. Arsenal is better off. Petr Cech is a once in a long while type of keeper. If you can secure him for as little as £10 million, you take it. No questions asked. It does not matter who you currently have in goal. Unfortunately for David Ospina, that was him.

Rumor has it that Besiktas is bearing down on Ospina for a transfer. While I do not think he deserves to be sold after being such a solid piece of the team, it may be best for him. And in the end, I will always root for the guy and wish him well. He was a crucial piece of Arsenal’s 2014/15 season. Timing just was not in his favor.