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Report: Arsenal fail with multiple bids for Brentford 'keeper David Raya

Mike Egerton - PA Images / PA Images / Getty

Arsenal's attempts to sign David Raya as competition to Bernd Leno are falling short so far.

The Gunners have submitted multiple offers worth around £10 million to Brentford for their goalkeeper, but the Championship promotion hopefuls are desperate to retain Raya in this transfer window, according to The Guardian's Ben Fisher and Nick Ames.

Mikel Arteta is trying to boost his shot-stopping options following Wednesday's £20-million transfer of Emiliano Martinez to Aston Villa. Icelandic 'keeper Runar Alex Runarsson is also apparently close to moving to the Emirates Stadium from Dijon, but Arteta is considering signing both Runarsson and Raya this summer.

Raya, 25, used to work under Arsenal's goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana at Brentford and has impressed in the second tier. His short passing from the back is regularly picked out as being crucial to Thomas Frank's game plan, but his 15 clean sheets in the Championship's 2019-20 regular season also demonstrate his stubbornness between the sticks.

Brentford's reluctance to sell Raya stems from the sale of Ollie Watkins, who recently moved to Aston Villa for a reported initial £28-million fee, and continued speculation surrounding their artful wideman, Said Benrahma. The Bees are hesitant to let more players who narrowly avoided promotion to the Premier League last season leave, Fisher and Ames report.

Arteta's pursuit of goalkeepers Raya and Runarsson could lead to the departure of 26-year-old academy product Matt Macey.

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