Aaron Ramsdale: What has gone wrong for ex-Arsenal goalkeeper at Southampton?

In April 2023, Aaron Ramsdale was within touching distance of winning the Premier League with Arsenal.

But the goalkeeper made a costly error for the Gunners to give away the opening goal in a 3-3 draw with Southampton at Emirates Stadium which contributed to the demise of Arsenal's 2022-23 title bid.

If Arsenal had won that game, the title would have been in their hands. Instead, the draw handed the initiative to Manchester City, who took full advantage.

It was a mistake which perhaps also signalled the beginning of the end for Ramsdale under Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.

Four months later, the north London club brought in David Raya from Brentford and the Spaniard quickly claimed the number one spot.

And in a somewhat unfortunate poetic twist, it is the Saints where Ramsdale finds himself completely out of favour three years on as the fourth-choice goalkeeper at a Championship club.

From an England international on the cusp of greatness, Ramsdale is now in the almost unthinkable situation of being without senior football this season in the prime of his career at the age of 28.

So why has Ramsdale had such a fall from grace and where have things gone wrong?

Questions were raised among the Arsenal fanbase when the club paid £24m to sign Ramsdale from Sheffield United in August 2021 after the Blades had been relegated from the top flight.

But he quickly won supporters over by producing a string of excellent saves in his debut season, perhaps most notably against Leicester City when he denied a James Maddison free-kick at full stretch - a save which Peter Schmeichel described at the time as "the best I've seen for years".

After ousting Bernd Leno, his efforts helped Arsenal finish fifth in 2021-22, improving on an eighth-placed finish the previous year.

The following season, Ramsdale was a vital cog in Arsenal's spine as they launched a surprise title challenge, only to be outdone by an imperious Manchester City side.

Despite his blunder in the draw with Southampton - which was one of several results that dented Arsenal's title hopes - Ramsdale made the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) team of the year and was also named goalkeeper of the year at the London Football Awards.

But Ramsdale quickly fell behind Raya in the pecking order in 2023-24 and lost his starting berth after just four league games.

And in one of the only two other Premier League matches he did play that season against Raya's then parent club Brentford, Ramsdale made another mistake to allow Yoane Wissa to put the Bees ahead.

Arsenal recovered to win that game 2-1 in March 2024. But Ramsdale never played for the club again.

He was sold to Southampton for £25m in August 2024 after returning from Euro 2024 with England, having been an unused sub throughout the competition in Germany.

A fourth relegation and failed Newcastle loan

At the time of Ramsdale's signing, he looked to be the perfect goalkeeper and a coup for Southampton.

Russell Martin's side had just won promotion and were hoping to implement a style of play in the Premier League that had brought them such success the previous season.

Ramsdale ticked all the boxes as a goalkeeper who had ability with his feet to complement Martin's preference to build up from the back.

His previous spells at Sheffield United and Bournemouth also justified his addition as someone whose stock had continued to rise despite being involved in relegations.

Ultimately, though, the move to Southampton did not work out as planned.

He made 30 league appearances for a Saints side which finished bottom of the Premier League with just 12 points - the second-lowest ever points tally in the competition - and conceded more goals (66) than any other goalkeeper in 2024-25.

That is not to say Ramsdale was to blame in a Southampton side which performed poorly across the board, with some fans at the time in fact praising him for keeping the score down in games.

It would, however, be the fourth relegation Ramsdale had suffered, having already done so with Chesterfield, while on loan in 2017-18, the Cherries in 2019-20 - although he was named player of the year for Bournemouth that season - and then the Blades.

After signing from Sheffield United in 2017, Ramsdale was an understudy to experienced goalkeeper Asmir Begovic at the Vitality Stadium for two years before his breakthrough.

"First of all, Aaron's a fantastic goalkeeper," Begovic told BBC Sport.

"We first worked together about nine years ago and since then he's been on an incredible ride where he's performed at the highest level.

"I remember my remit when I came into Bournemouth was to mentor and set a tone for some of the younger goalkeepers, one of which was Aaron Ramsdale.

"There's many different factors that go into it but I think it's been unfortunate that maybe a few things haven't aligned for him [at Southampton]."

Southampton's relegation prompted Ramsdale to seek top flight football once more and he moved to Newcastle United on loan for the 2025-26 campaign.

But again, what was supposed to be a move to help re-establish his career at the highest level did not come to pass.

Ramsdale kept just two clean sheets in 23 appearances in all competitions for the Magpies, featuring only 12 times in the Premier League - and neither he nor Nick Pope could make the number one spot permanently their own.

He also had the unfortunate experience of letting in seven goals in one game in a 7-2 defeat by Barcelona in the Champions League last-16 - the most he has ever conceded in a single game.

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'Very difficult and frustrating' - what next for Ramsdale?

Southampton boss Tonda Eckert has seemingly made it clear Ramsdale is not part of his plans this season, with Daniel Peretz his number one, George Long the second choice and Jamie Jones returning to the club as mainly a training goalkeeper.

"The reality is that Rambo's story with the football club started before myself," Eckert told BBC Radio Solent .

"We've had honest conversations from the first day of pre-season until the very last day of the transfer window.

"The expectations for him are clear to support the team in the best way and he's been very professional in doing that so far."

Despite his exclusion so far this season, Ramsdale is said to have a good relationship with Eckert, the coaching staff and the other goalkeepers - and has an affection for the club.

Ramsdale also believes there is a route back into the first team for him at St Mary's and is willing to fight for his place until at least January, when the winter transfer window opens.

He had offers on the table in the summer to go on loan to clubs in England, Spain and Italy but declined, with his current ambition to try to help Southampton win promotion back to the Premier League and play in the top flight.

As well as being a popular figure in the dressing room and well-liked by Saints supporters, Ramsdale also had personal factors to consider for what would have been a move to a fourth club in four years.

His wife recently gave birth to their second child and the family are settled in the area, with Ramsdale only wanting to change clubs if it was the right opportunity.

Begovic says his former team-mate will be finding his current lack of playing time "very difficult and frustrating".

"I had a few spells where I was frozen out at a club for a short time but I can't really relate to Aaron's situation," he added.

"I can imagine there will be some factors that are out of his hands. In the meantime he'll have to make sure that he trains well and stays fit and be ready if an opportunity comes up to play.

"He has to be ready for the long term and if the chance to move elsewhere comes up, he's ready.

"I'd love to see Aaron playing again and hopefully it happens in January but I'm fully aware that it won't be a straightforward situation."