David Raya feels that his double save that secured a point against Atalanta was one of the best three he has made in his career.
Not for the first time this campaign our number one came up big for us, this time saving Mateo Retegui’s low penalty, before jumping up and managing to shovel away the striker’s headed rebound off his goalline.
It was the standout moment of our goalless draw in Italy, and he admitted that the opportunity to have a chat with goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana during the lengthy VAR check helped give him the confidence to pull off the wonder save.
Taling us through those key moments, he said: “The decision was taking a very, very long time so I decided to go to the bench and speak to him to be on the same page, and what things we could do to have a better chance to save, and it worked out.
“I saved it and then I was lucky enough to get up again and get the rebound, and then luckily enough then Declan I think it was managed to kick the ball for a corner, so obviously I’m delighted with the double save.
“I think this one is one of the top three in my career. Of course the Aston Villa got us to win the game and everything so that’s a little bit more special, but doing it in the Champions League is a dream.”
David’s magic ensured that we departed back to London with a point on the board to kickstart our Champions League journey, in a scrappy encounter that saw both teams struggle to keep possession and create clear-cut chances.
But the Spanish international feels that it could be a handy point in the circumstances, and as the big games keep coming he is already turning his attentions to Manchester City on Sunday.
“We wanted to win but we knew how tough it was going to be and they made it very difficult for us,” he analysed. “We knew they were going to go man-to-man and create a lot of high-pressing situations, and we’re a little bit disappointed with everything and the result. But in the end, if we’re not at our best and we can’t win the game just don’t lose it. At the end we got a point, a clean sheet and we go again.
“We’ve got the journey home now and we have to recover as quickly as possible, and that’s it - just focus on Sunday now. We’ve got a massive challenge and we want to go to the Etihad and get the three points, so we’ve got to do a lot of things right to make that happen.”
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