Former Premier League stopper Brad Friedel has given Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta a vital insight into the talents of Matt Turner and Auston Trusty ahead of their arrivals in the summer.
Turner, the New England Revolution stopper, is on the verge of a switch to the Emirates Stadium. His current employers have already announced his exit but the Gunners are yet to confirm his signing as they await a work permit and successful medical.
On the other hand, Colorado Rapids defender Trusty is also set to become an Arsenal player, with the move having already been confirmed.
Ex-Spurs stopper Brad Friedel has been giving his thoughts on the pair ahead of their respective arrivals and is intrigued to see how they adapt to life in north London having seen them at close quarters.
Speaking to SunSport on behalf of Bet365, he said: “I coached Matt and gave him his professional debut. Matt is an outstanding shot-stopper.
“He will be able to put pressure on Ramsdale, I’ve no doubt about it. What I would say, is this will be the first time in Matt’s career that he sees what competition for places truly is. He’s such a good kid and a solid human being.”
He continued: “But this will be the first time Matt goes into a club and sees four, five, six top quality goalkeepers all training at the same time, so it’ll be interesting to see how he copes with it all.
“Can he challenge? Yeah, absolutely – but like anyone he’ll need to adapt and get used to the pace of the game. What’s great is he’ll be getting a pre-season with Arsenal, so perfect for him to get acclimated.”
On Trusty, Friedel also said: “I coached Auston as well, really good in defence, really powerful in the air, left-footed so he can be deployed as a left sided centre-back but also a left-back if needs be.
“This will be an interesting one to see. It’s going to be a big jump for Auston, but he’s a great kid, really hard worker and I want to see everything work out for him, I really do.
“It’ll be interesting to see the amount of playing time he can get. I wouldn’t want to say now it’ll be a certainty that he’ll be sent out on loan.
“Because like Matt Turner, he’ll join in the summer and go through a pre-season, so let’s see what happens and whether he can win himself a place inside that squad.”
