Alan Smith believes Aaron Ramsdale will need to look to the bottom half of the table if he wants to be a starting goalkeeper in the Premier League again.
Ramsdale was Arsenal's No. 1 upon joining from Sheffield United in 2021, but he lost his job to David Raya shortly after the Spaniard arrived at the Emirates Stadium on loan from Brentford ahead of the 2023-24 season. Raya has since made the move permanent by signing a long-term contract with the Gunners, leaving Ramsdale to look elsewhere for playing time.
However, retired Arsenal striker Smith doesn't think it will be easy for Ramsdale to find an open spot as a starting goalkeeper at any of the better sides in England. Speaking to Genting Casino, Smith explained that Ramsdale may need to swallow his pride and consider joining an unfancied side in order to get his career back on track.
"I think it’s going to be difficult for him," Smith said. "I was looking at the Premier League table and most teams in the top half have that first-choice goalkeeper position well covered. It's difficult to see anywhere that Ramsdale will go in as the number one.
"Would he want to go in as the number two somewhere? I wouldn’t have thought so because that will not get him anywhere. Perhaps he needs to look further down the table, maybe to even one of the promoted sides like Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton. You look at their keepers and Ramsdale's a step up from the ones that they've gained promotion with.
"Is Ramsdale worth more than that? Is he too good to be playing for one of those promoted clubs? Maybe he is, but the most important thing for him is to establish himself as a number one for a season and playing regular football. He deserves to be playing week-in, week-out with his ability.
"Maybe he'll have to accept an offer that doesn't equate with his ability and his experience, but one that could be seen as a good move for him to start building up his career again.
"He's unfortunate that all of the top sides are sorted with world-class keepers."
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