Did Aaron Ramsdale have his best performance to date at Anfield?

Since joining Arsenal, Aaron Ramsdale has won plaudits for his ball-playing ability but has faced some criticism for his shot-stopping and positioning in one on ones. The narrative surrounding the latter is now starting to change.

After a great start to life in north London, Ramsdale’s form was impacted after a hip injury forced him to miss England duty, and upon return, he couldn’t quite find his best form, which carried into the beginning of this campaign.

However, by October, the Ramsdale that Arsenal fans fell in love with had returned, and he has gone from strength to strength ever since, with numerous areas of his game being strengthened.

Did Aaron Ramsdale have his best performance to date at Anfield?

Since arriving, he has been great with his feet and has made numerous camera saves that have really got people’s attention. However, he is now making saves on a more consistent basis; many that you would prefer him not to have to make.

Against Leeds and Palace, he made numerous stops that kept Arsenal in control and prevented the momentum from swinging. Against Liverpool, he was the reason his team came away with a point.

From start to finish, he was superb at Anfield and would have been gutted to have conceded two goals, neither of which he could have done anything about.

While the save from Mohamed Salah has got the attention of the media, and rightly so after it was made even harder to reach following the deflection off Gabriel, his saves to deny Darwin Nunez and Ibrahima Konate were just as impressive, especially the latter.

One-on-one situations were once a weakness for him, with his positioning coming into question, but that has changed since returning from the World Cup.

Rambo now looks big, calm and assured when faced with a striker bearing down on goal, and against Nunez, he stood his ground and forced the unconvincing Uruguayan to make the decision. He wasn’t going to do it for him. If he was going to score, Nunez was going to have to beat him.

That’s what top goalkeepers do. They don’t gift goals by making the decisions for strikers. They make them earn it. Ramsdale has added that to his game, which is an incredible feat for a goalkeeper who is still just 24 years old.

With each passing week, we’re seeing him refine his game further to the point that there is a real trust in everything he does. His display at Anfield was arguably his best in an Arsenal shirt and could be a moment that we look back on as the point when he became a top, top keeper.

Ramsdale has the potential and personality to become world-class and is unapologetically determined to get there. He’s already discussed his desire to establish himself as “a hero and legend at this football club”.

That attitude and the desire to stay at Arsenal for “ten, 12, 15 years”, as he put it, shows that he wants to achieve everything. Becoming a legend at the club is down to a mix of performances and trophies, and if he wants to be mentioned in the same breath as David Seaman, he will need to amass an impressive trophy haul.

The early signs suggest he can do that, and Arsenal will be hoping that he can produce the same magic he did at Anfield if he is called up again this season. But, most of us would prefer to see him have quiet afternoons and not be called into action again!