Ben White could be next Arsenal starter to lose his spot after Brentford win

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has proven he has a ruthless streak in him with the decision to promote David Raya above Aaron Ramsdale as his No 1. Ben White could be the next starter who loses his spot in the Gunners side following Takehiro Tomiyasu’s performance against Brentford on Wednesday.

Not many expected Ramsdale to drop out of the team following the international break. He had only just played for England in their 3-1 win over Scotland after starting Arsenal’s first four matches of the Premier League season.

But he was ditched at Goodison Park in favour of summer arrival Raya. Arteta insisted he will continue to rotate his goalkeepers and pick them depending on who suits each match best.

However, Raya stayed in goal for Arsenal’s first Champions League match in over six years against PSV Eindhoven as well as the north London derby against Tottenham on Sunday. Ramsdale returned at Brentford in the Carabao Cup, suggesting he has been relegated to being a cup keeper for the time being at least.

Arteta is always looking to improve individual positions and obviously can’t do that with new signings until January. But he can look from within and Tomiyasu could be the latest beneficiary.

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Tomiyasu joined Arsenal from Bologna in 2021 and immediately became a favourite with supporters. He played the majority of his first campaign as a right-back before injury in January 2022 halted his progress.

He continued to be hampered by fitness issues and missed the start of his second season in England. That gave Ben White a chance to stake a claim at right-back, a position he had rarely played before for Arsenal.

The emergence of William Saliba’s partnership with Gabriel meant White had to find a new role in Arteta’s side. He settled in straight away on the right of defence and there was no immediate way back for Tomiyasu.

Tomiyasu had to settle for bit-part roles, often at left-back in the absence of Oleksandr Zinchenko, before a knee injury in March ruled him out for the remainder of the season. But now he looks to be back to full fitness and top form.

He started this campaign at left-back, with Zinchenko again out, and was perhaps unlucky to be sent off at Crystal Palace. Now Zinchenko is fit, he will start.

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But for Tomiyasu to get into the team, White may be the player to fall by the wayside. White hasn’t started the season as well as he did last and perhaps would have already lost his place if Jurrien Timber hadn’t suffered a cruel knee injury on the opening day.

White isn’t playing poorly by any means but neither was Ramsdale. But Tomiyasu’s performance against Brentford was a reminder of his qualities.

At the time of writing, the 24-year-old was overwhelmingly winning the player-of-the-match vote on the Arsenal website with over 56 per cent. He started the game in the middle of defence, a position he also shone in for Japan against Germany recently.

He showed his versatility by switching to right-back when White was substituted before moving into a back three as Arsenal saw out a narrow win in west London. Arsenal are struggling defensively at home in the Premier League, conceding in every match so far at the Emirates, and White has often been caught out on the right-hand side.

William Saliba and Zinchenko are unlikely to lose their places, while Gabriel has impressed since coming back into the team. White therefore could be the unfortunate party if Arteta thinks Tomiyasu can make the necessary difference.

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