David Raya Comment Leaves Thierry Henry Speechless After Champions League Heroics

David Raya had an eventful night as Arsenal opened their Champions League campaign with a goalless draw against Atalanta. Mikel Arteta’s men had to rely on their goalkeeper to keep out the Serie A outfit before Raya left Thierry Henry shaking his head after the game.

The Gunners’ trip to Italy proved to be more difficult than first thought, as Gian Piero Gasperini’s men put up a strong fight and could’ve emerged with all three points. Striker Mateo Retegui was handed a golden opportunity to open the scoring after Thomas Partey fouled Ederson inside the penalty area.

Raya was the hero as he thwarted the Italian forward from 12 yards before getting to his feet to make an incredible double-save. Robbie Savage – on commentary for TNT Sports – described it as ‘one of the best saves’ he’d ever seen.

Raya Disappoints Thierry Henry

He was asked to choose between the CBS panel

Following his brilliant effort to preserve his clean sheet in Bergamo, the Spain international was highly sought-after for post-match interviews. He joined Kate Abdo, Thierry Henry, Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards for an interview on CBS Sports.

The channel’s coverage of Europe’s elite competition is known to be an entertaining affair, and it was no different in the wake of Arsenal’s first Champions League game of the season. Richards often likes to put players on the spot by asking: “Who’s your favourite on the panel?”

When put under this pressure, Raya remained as calm as he did when faced by a penalty and gave a firm answer. The shot-stopper admitted:

The former Manchester City and England right-back instantly jumped to his feet and made his way over to the screen Raya was appearing on. After kissing the screen, Richards shouted: “I love you!”

While Carragher saw the funny side, the same can’t exactly be said for Henry. The Arsenal legend spent the rest of the segment hiding behind his hand after being snubbed by a current Gunner. Raya quickly said: “Titi, don’t look like that,” but the Frenchman was left speechless. View the hilarious moment below:

Arsenal Labour to Draw in Italy

Arteta’s side struggled to create many chances

The Premier League side managed just six efforts on goal throughout the match, which was fewer than Atalanta had. The only two times the Gunners really worked the opposition goalkeeper came from a Bukayo Saka free-kick in the first-half and a Gabriel Martinelli effort in the dying stages.

Arsenal are used to dominating possession in domestic fixtures, but the Italian side enjoyed the lion’s share of the ball and looked the more likely side to make a breakthrough. Escaping Italy with a draw against the Europa League champions isn’t a bad result, but the north London outfit will hope to elevate their game for this weekend’s huge clash against Manchester City in the title race.

Statistics courtesy of Opta Analyst. Correct as of 20-09-24.