Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya clinched the Premier League’s Golden Glove honour after Luton scored against Everton’s Jordan Pickford on Friday.
Raya, who joined the Gunners on loan from Brentford in the summer, secured the accolade with 14 clean sheets in 29 league matches this season.
Prior to Friday’s match, Pickford was the only goalkeeper with a chance to surpass Raya in the Golden Glove standings.
However, Pickford’s aspirations were dashed when Elijah Adebayo levelled the score for Luton in their 1-1 draw, leaving the Everton and England goalkeeper trailing Raya by two clean sheets with two fixtures remaining
At best, Pickford can only match Raya’s tally.
When David Raya arrived on a season-long loan from Brentford in August, there was scepticism given Arsenal’s already settled goalkeeper, Aaron Ramsdale, who had played all 38 matches the previous season and kept 14 clean sheets.
A BBC Sport poll conducted the day after Raya’s signing saw 63% of respondents favoring Ramsdale to retain his position over Raya.
Raya faced criticism initially, particularly after making two errors in Arsenal’s narrow 4-3 victory over Luton in December. However, he redeemed himself in March by saving two penalties, propelling Arsenal to a Champions League quarter-final berth with a shootout win over Porto.
BBC Sport chief football writer Phil McNulty even said his performance that night “settled all lingering arguments about his status as Arsenal’s first-choice goalkeeper.”.