Arsenal fans will laugh when they see where ESPN ranked David Raya

ESPN just ranked the top 50 players in the Premier League and, in quite a laughable manner, they ranked David Raya as the 47th best player in the league.

Their justification for doing so is that goalkeepers are harder to judge than outfield positions. "I'm certainly open to the idea that goalkeepers are way more valuable than we think. Unfortunately, their performance is hard to measure in any predictive way... keepers tend to be the lowest-paid players on the field, so I'm going to put them in their own tier for now and hold it toward the bottom of the rankings."

Which is controversial in its own manner. Many would argue that goalkeepers are the glue that holds the defence together.

In the past, goalkeepers may have just been bodies in between the sticks but now, they have so much more to do. They almost need to be just as good in possession as defenders, and their distribution is under the spotlight.

ESPN ranked Emiliano Martinez above David Raya

ESPN placing goalkeepers low down in the list is one thing, but ranking Emiliano Martinez above David Raya is an entirely different thing.

David Raya is easily the best goalkeeper in the Premier League. It doesn't take a genius to tell you that, because it is not rocket science.

Last season, David Raya kept 19 clean sheets, fewer than any other goalkeeper. He also conceded just 51 goals; again, fewer than any other goalkeeper.

In terms of save percentages, well, Martinez kept a higher save percentage (70.9%) than Raya (69.8%). However, this is only one part of the equation. If it were being judged to decide the best goalkeeper in the league, then Gianluigi Donnarumma would win (72.9%).

This is just a personification of the broader view of goalkeeping as a position

Goalkeepers are over-hated and underrated. That's just a simple matter of fact.

It is not strictly an ESPN thing, either. Almost every publication undervalues goalkeepers, and the same can be said for any awarding body.

However, Arsenal would not be Premier League champions without Raya. You could say that Aston Villa wouldn't be Europa League champions without Martinez, and that would also be correct.

Raya not facing as many shots should not be used to make a case against him, as ESPN did by saying "He's always making big saves, and he's hard to quantify because Arsenal give up so few quality shots."

The fact that Raya faces so few shots is because Raya is so good. If he wasn't as commanding, and didn't lead the defence as well as he does, then Arsenal would face more shots. If you were to ask any Arsenal fan, they would not take those qualities away from Raya just to see how good he is at shot-stopping.

Let's be completely frank here. Goalkeeping at the highest level has moved past shot-stopping. Some of the best goalkeepers in the world are some of the worst at shot-stopping. That's just football in 2026.

ESPN, to their credit, did praise Raya for what he is best at, being "a fantastic sweeper-keeper, and great with his feet," but to rank one of the Premier League's most important and talented players at 47th in the league just feels unjust.

A case can be made to place Martinez above Raya. I think it's inherently wrong, but that's just my opinion. However, a case can't be made for 46 Premier League players being better than Raya - that's where Arsenal fans have every right to scoff.

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