Arsenal Confirm Mathew Ryan Loan Signing from Brighton

Arsenal have confirmed the capture of MathewRyan on a six-month loan deal from Brighton.

A stunning transfer that came out of the blue sees the Australian stopper move to north London until the end of the season, as confirmed by the club on their official website.

Bernd Leno has been in need of backup this season with Runar Alex Runarsson not being deemed up to the standard required, and the loan capture of Mathew Ryan will come as a smart peice of business on behalf of the Gunners.

"Technical director Edu said: “Mat is an experienced goalkeeper, a proven talent in the Premier League and has also played many internationals for Australia. Mat will further strengthen our squad with his experience and knowledge of playing at the highest level.“Following Matt Macey’s recent move to Hibernian, Mat will provide very good competition and positive support to all our goalkeepers and we are looking forward to him integrating quickly into the set-up here at Arsenal.”Mikel Arteta said: “We know Mat very well through his performances with Brighton in recent seasons and he brings additional quality to our squad. Mat has very good Premier League experience and has played over 100 times in the league, which is something that will benefit us greatly on and off the pitch. We welcome Mat to Arsenal and look forward to working with him this season.”"

The stopper added on his official Twitter page:

"“Signing for the club you grew up supporting as a kid. “Buzzing to be beginning this new chapter and will give everything I’ve got to contribute to the first club I ever loved.”"

This comes as a major coup on Arsenal’s part, who have signed an experienced goalkeeper to provide cover in an area that would be frighteningly weak should Leno be struck with injury.

The Aussie stopper has played over 100 times in the Premier League but lost his place in the Seagulls’ side this season to promising young Spanish stopper Robert Sánchez. It’s no big surprise considering how he is performing against his xG this season, now sitting at -3.2.

However, the goalkeeper has been a consitent performer in his previous campaigns, and at a time where top-flight experienced goalkeepers are at a minimum, his addition is a suave, and smart, one on the club’s behalf. Furthermore, he has been registered in time to feature in the FA Cup on Saturday.