David Ospina has declared himself content with his first season at Arsenal, saying he’s determined to make the most of playing for one of England’s biggest clubs.
The Colombian is on his way to meet up with his international teammates for the Copa America, and was quizzed by Pulzo (local paper) about the team’s preparations for that. However, they did touch on Arsenal and his debut season in English football.
“I’m very happy and content,” he said. “We have completed this season in the best way possible.
“We have achieved some of the objectives we set ourselves, like direct qualification for the Champions League, as well as finishing with the FA Cup win.”
And speaking about his time in general, he said, “The experience has been very positive, in truth. Now I have to keep making the most of this fantastic opportunity I’ve been given.”
Ospina, despite being the Premier League first choice since January, sat out the FA Cup final on Saturday as Wojciech Szczesny was given the nod by Arsene Wenger.
The Pole has since reiterated his desire to stay at the club, but rumours of Arsenal’s interest in a new number 1 mean the goalkeeping situation is one that will generate headlines over the course of the summer.
All in all though, the Colombian should feel happy with his first season in a new league.
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Love Ospina – love the competition he has brought. I’m just not sure he is that goalie that will get us to the next level. His footwork looks a bit slow and rusty at times – but debut season, can’t grumble too much.
Good lad, great spirit. Expecting him and Szcz to battle it out next season.
It is an interesting situation, two good goalkeepers, usually one very good and one good goal keeper combination works better but as Chelsea experiencing, you cant keep good goalkeeper as a second choice more than one season…they did it with Guddicini for some years though! I expect Shez to improve immensly and being the number one! Personally I think he is better than Chech!!!
For his first season, Ospina has done a good job. I’m interested to see how he improves next season.
People seem to often overlook that Ospina can improve. He’s young for a goalkeeper – only a year older than Szczesny. Yet mostly we talk about Szczesny as being the exciting young player with potential but who makes the occasional mistake, compared to Ospina who’s the solid keeper.
If this was Ospina’s debut season in a new country, then surely he can improve a lot next season? Who knows who will be the better keeper in time.
Plus Ospina still has to improve his English, which should help even more.
I like our squad and the team spirit Wenger seems to have fostered, no mean feat given how large and talented the squad is. I like Ospina as a squad player as well, but I just think Woj is a better keeper with a greater ceiling. He’s tall, athletic, good at crosses, a shot stopper and a bit of an overconfident knucklehead. If he gets rid of the latter, he will be great at his job. On an unrelated note, don’t get rid of Santi. Please. He is instrumental and fundamental to our better play, simply because of the way… Read more »
Highly unlikely that we will get rid of someone that was one of our very best players and one of the best in the league.
Not worth worrying about, only peripheral players like Poldi are likely to go.
We won the cup!
If I’m honest, I did have hopes of a title push at the start of the season but I’m still delighted with 3rd and the FA cup. I actually don’t think our keeping situation is such a worry and reckon Szcz will probably regain the #1 spot for next season. To be fair both keepers are pretty young and could well develop. I think Arsene will probably focus on signing a creative wide player and look at developing Welbeck as a centre forward rather than buying a shiny new one. I’d actually like to see Gnabry given a chance out… Read more »
Small world
Ha ha. So you were the guy James saw walking along wearing an Arsenal shirt! Sweet.
You should change your profile name on here to Gunnerblog’s Neighbour
Or were you the one helping the half dressed lady ‘move furniture’ whilst your apartment might have burned down?
I’d love to say I was…
Szcz still a better keeper.We are lucky to have both.l also rate Damien highly.
I like Szcz however he managed to produce a nervy moment in the FA Cup final. He just worries me in certain situations and I don’t fully trust him between the sticks. Ospina, on the other hand, has had quite solid performances bar a few potential howlers against West Brom.
Lest we forget, Emi Martinez is also quite a good/possibly underrated ‘keeper (that game against Stoke aside; how is Szczesny our only ‘keeper who’s excellent in the air?)
A keeper is not a position you fill outright with brilliance, rather a person who grows into the squad, and the outfield in turn grows out of him. Even DeGea had to take time to consolidate his importance. Joe Hart once looked like less but City have gone on to win the league with him. In short, we are well sorted in that department. Have Poldi replace Gunnersaurus instead.
Sori folks. But I prefer Ospina anytime. We got 3rd with him in between the sticks…lest we forget.
Produce some excellent saves…notably vs Chelsea & Liverpool.
No fancy stuff from him. Safe and sound all through & through.
Definitely more to come from him next season.
Ospina > Woj
Wenger says “”I believe in the goalkeepers I have. I believe that Szczesny is a very good goalkeeper and Ospina has come in and done a fantastic job. You look at the numbers in the Premier League and you look at who is top of all the goalkeepers and you will see it’s Ospina,” the Frenchman asserted” This season here is the shots per goal allowed for goal keepers with 10 or more appearances 5.18 D Ospina ARS 4.35 B Myhill WBA 4.24 C Pantilimon SUN 4.00 S Harper HUL 3.93 L Fabianski SWA 3.86 F Forster SHN 3.64 Adrián… Read more »
Just to clarify I don’t think he’ll have made “more saves than any other keeper in the top 5 in 2015” if the table is based on shots per goal – for example if Pantillimon let in 40 goals that’s just over 160 saves at 4 saves per goal, whereas Ospina may have let in 20 at 5 = 100 saves.
Apols for the ludicrous pedantry but it’s details like that which let us bathe in the enjoyment of having appeared in more cup finals than any other club, and having won more than any other club, and so on…
I think what Double98 means is that Ospina’s made more saves than Courtois, Hart, de Gea and Lloris, the keepers of the top five teams.
ah, not the top 5 keepers in the list… makes sense
Yes thats what i meant!
he’s OSP-WOME
And yet there is a telling statistic of the majority of or goals against coming from crosses- the most in the league, (if memory serves me correct, where’s 7amkickoff?) 40%. This is where Ospina is weakest, he’s benefited from our best CB pairing but, on several occasions has gone full Almunia on crosses. Villa identified crosses as an Arsenal weakness (in what little possession they had) but, Szcz absolutely dominated his box. What makes me nervous about Szcz is his insistence on drawing a man when distributing from his box- he really doesn’t need to take these risks. 2 very… Read more »
I’m still trying to understand the fear for our goalkeeping department, I think its the media trying to coax us into buying cech to disrupt our squad unity. For me the only problem we have is because we have two goalies so good we can’t choose and a 3rd better than Mignolet.. Thankfully we have Arsene not pellegrini or maureen, don’t see him signing two goalkeepers in 2years