Jamie Carragher has pointed out that David Raya’s propensity for going down is helping Arsenal to exploit a key football rule regarding goalkeepers.
Arsenal have been accused of employing the dark arts of football to get results and many have levelled criticism against them for using cynical means on the pitch.
They have been charged with time-wasting and their players have been accused of going down too easily to break up the rhythm of their opponents and try to provoke them emotionally.
Raya has often gone down too easily in some instances and even John Stones pointed that out following Arsenal’s 2-2 draw at Manchester City on Sunday.
Goalkeepers can’t be treated for any injury off the pitch and any medical attention required for them would have to mean stopping the play.
Jamie Carragher feels Arsenal are exploiting the goalkeeper rule more than anyone else
The former Liverpool defender has picked up on the way Raya’s antics have been forcing a break in play and allowing the Arsenal players to gather around Mikel Arteta.
He stressed that Arsenal are exploiting the rule more than anyone else and the Gunners goalkeeper is going down under the slightest of pressure or in tense moments to allow his teammates to catch a break or get instructions from the coaching staff.
“There is one thing that I do noticed at Arsenal and that’s more than anyone else – I think your goalkeeper goes down a lot more than other goalkeepers”, Carragher said on The Overlap.
“In tense situations, he does because the rule is that the goalkeeper cannot go off.
“It’s one thing that the coaching staff at Arsenal are switched on about more than anyone else. I see Raya going down in high-pressure situations.”
Mikel Arteta has brushed aside criticism of his Arsenal team for employing dark arts and insisted that he likes dealing with facts.
