Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has admitted that he is wary of how many teams he is angering with his ‘s***housery’ due to his aspirations of becoming England’s no.1.
The 23-year-old has been one of the Gunners’ star performers this season, impressing with how much progress he has made since making his £30million move from Sheffield United in the summer. Arsenal are on course to finish fourth this season, and Ramsdale will be credited with playing a huge role in achieving that feat if they can get across the line.
But it is not just the former Bournemouth keeper’s shot-stopping ability that has caught the eye, his desire to banter with opposition supporters and wind up the crowd has also become noticeable. But Ramsdale has admitted that he is having to be more ‘careful’ with how many fan bases he is turning against him.
Speaking about how he believes he will thrive in a competitive environment like the World Cup, the Gunners no.1 told The Peter Crouch Podcast: “I need to be careful of how many teams I piss off, and I’m being genuinely serious, because at one point I hope to be an England goalie so I want their support.”
Ramsdale has been caught waving at Chelsea supporters after beating their side 4-2 recently, as well as celebrating directly in front of Manchester United ’s Bruno Fernandes after the playmaker missed a penalty. Speaking about the latter incident, Peter Crouch said: “I believe you’re on your way to becoming a top s***houser, one of England’s greatest. The (Martin) Keown move versus Bruno Fernandes, for me, top s***house move of the season.”
To which Ramsdale replied: “It was good ‘housery. But I think it got blown out of proportion because there was five or six Arsenal players in front of me, so I celebrated with them. It’s just emotion, it’s nothing to do with him, nothing to do with his football club or anything like that, it’s just pure emotion.
“I find it quite funny how other players or other fans can do what they want to goalies who stand there on their own for 90 minutes and get abused. I waved at a Chelsea fan the other week who was giving me all sorts all second half and we scored the penalty and I waved at him. The security guard said ‘why’d you do that? That wasn’t necessary’ so I said ‘you’ve listened to everything he’s said, every name under the sun, and I can’t simply wave’. It’s enjoyment for me.
“It keeps me engaged if I’m giving some out to the players or fans. I can’t make a mistake or I’m going to get hammered so after Fernandes missed that penalty, I knew that if he’d have scored against me I’m in big, big trouble.”
With the Qatar World Cup on the horizon, it remains to be seen whether Gareth Southgate decides to shake up his England lineup this winter and commit to playing Ramsdale given his good form. Everton ’s Jordan Pickford has been Southgate’s ‘go to’ goalkeeper for the past few years and has thrived at the major international tournaments previously.
