Ian Wright has hit out at Arsenal star David Raya for his method when facing penalties after the Gunners drew with Everton on Saturday.
Leandro Trossard gave Mikel Arteta’s side the lead with a well-directed shot into the far corner on the counter-attack but Iliman Ndiaye levelled from the penalty spot after Myles Lewis-Skelly was adjudged to have fouled Jack Harrison in the box.
Ndiaye sent Raya the wrong way as he converted the spot kick and Wright again questioned the Spanish goalkeeper’s penalty tactics after Raya – who’s saved just five of 44 penalties in his career – was similarly criticised after the shootout defeat to Manchester United in the FA Cup in January.
The Gunners legend believes Raya is making it too easy for the penalty takers by “taking this massive leap to one side”.
“I saw something the other day with David Raya on the penalties,” Wright told Premier League Productions.
“He seems to be taking this massive leap to one side, which is almost giving the penalty taker so much time to say, ‘well, he’s definitely going that way’.
“I’ve seen penalties being taken against him recently where he’s continually going the wrong way.
“I think his form in trying to save them, I think it’s wrong, simply because he’s going so far, he’s making such a commitment to one side.
“He’s giving it up, especially if you’ve got a longer run up, you can actually see him a yard away from the ball, he’s gone, he’s [Ndiaye] not kicked the ball yet and David Raya has taken two steps to his right.
“You’re going to see that when you’re running up, you can see he’s committed to one side.
“That’s the only thing I look at and worries me with the penalties being taken against us at the minute.”
Arteta insisted after the game that “there’s no way” referee Darren England should have awarded Everton the penalty.
He said: “I’ve seen it 15 times, there’s no way, in my opinion, that’s a penalty. Because if there is, then O’Brien has to be out and Everton has to play with 10 men, that’s clear.
“After that again, we dominated the game. We didn’t get too much momentum because he’s constantly breaking the play and a big part of that was down to us, because after direct play we get very cheap free-kicks away.
“We had two big chances to win the game, we didn’t convert them, so we have to accept the point.”
Wright also wasn’t impressed with referee England, but for a separate incident which saw Nathan Patterson slide in on Ethan Nwaneri.
Wright said: “There was a challenge on Nwaneri from Patterson. What’s your excuse for not booking him? That was poor. A dangerous challenge.”