David Raya's Incredible Save Earns Premier League Nomination
David Raya’s flying fingertip stop against Brighton & Hove Albion has earned him a place on the shortlist for the Premier League’s Save of the Season award, capping a campaign in which he has already walked away with the Golden Glove.
The moment in question came in December, in a tight 2-1 win at home to the Seagulls. Brighton were pushing, the game still in the balance, when Yankubah Minteh shaped a curling effort towards the top left corner. It looked perfect. The trajectory, the dip, the angle. Beaten goalkeepers usually just watch those.
Raya refused to play that role.
He exploded to his right, twisting mid-air, stretching out his right arm as far as it would go. The ball seemed to be past him; his fingertips said otherwise. A touch, the slightest redirection, and the shot that looked destined for the top corner was clawed away. The stadium knew instantly how big it was. So did the awards panel.
That save took December’s Save of the Month prize, drawing Raya level at the top of the all-time Premier League leaderboard for that award. He now sits alongside Andre Onana and Jordan Pickford, each with three monthly wins, a small but telling marker of how often he produces game-changing moments.
Save of the Season Shortlist
Now comes the season’s big one.
For the Save of the Season honour, Raya faces a strong field. The shortlist features:
- James Trafford and Gianluigi Donnarumma of Manchester City
- Martin Dubravka of Burnley
- Jordan Pickford of Everton
- Alphonse Areola of West Ham United
- Aaron Ramsdale of Newcastle United
- Karl Darlow of Leeds United
- Antonin Kinsky of Tottenham Hotspur
It is a list packed with reflex stops and acrobatic denials. Raya’s case rests on something more subtle: timing, context, and the kind of intervention that separates a routine win from a nervous finish. In a year defined by his consistency, one outstretched hand in December may yet deliver another major individual accolade.
