“N o, no, there’s someone else,” David Raya exclaims, springing from his seat at Spain’s training camp in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He retrieves his phone from a wash bag on the floor and begins to scroll. “‘… the goalkeeper, who played in yesterday’s match, was at Southport on loan from Oxford United…’ Yeah, Max Crocombe. I think that is right” he finally says, reading from the screen: “That time took me where I am now,”s match, was at Southport on loan from Oxford United…’ Yeah, Max Crocombe. I think that is right.
So now there are four names to add to the list. Alongside Peter Withe, Stan Mortensen, and himself, New Zealand’s No. 1 is now included among those who played for Southport and represented their countries at a World Cup.
Raya’s journey began with his first senior competitive match in front of 1,405 spectators away at Macclesfield in the Conference, culminating in a Champions League final attended by 61,035 in Budapest. This achievement makes him only the third player to have transitioned from non-league football to the biggest club game. The other two players? Steve Finnan and Chris Smalling. Just four days later, he celebrated on an open-topped bus parade with the Premier League trophy, joining the ranks of favorites for the World Cup, which he describes as the best days of his career.
However, those days stand in stark contrast to the present. “I was with the Under-21s [at Blackburn] and there were no demands, no pressure, no sense that the three points really mattered,” Raya reflects. At 18, he joined Southport, having been with Blackburn’s Under-21s, where the stakes were low and pressure nonexistent. “I told the club I needed minutes in professional football to experience what it means to have to win. I couldn’t go to League One obviously – I didn’t have the level – but going to the fifth tier shaped me.”
His opportunity to play emerged when Liam Roberts suffered an injury. The initial experience was challenging. “If you talk to the chairman or anyone else on the board at Southport they would tell you they were thinking: ‘who have we signed here?!’” Raya reminisces. “I was 18, 19 years old, playing in a league that was so, so physical. I had been used to playing in the Under-21s where it was all on the floor, playing nicely, and suddenly you’re being crashed into by 30, 35-year-old men who instead of going for the ball are going for the goalkeeper. “But once I got used to the league, earned my teammates’ trust, those were the three or four best months of my career in terms of learning.”
“You learn that it’s not as easy as when you are used to things being done for you. It’s people trying to make it to the end of the month. You have teammates who need the win bonus to pay the mortgage. You play midweek, five or six hours away, and they’re up at 6am to go to work. You see the reality, what football is, and it shapes you; you take nothing for granted. And I enjoyed it a lot, a lot – even if they did smack me all over the place. I had black eyes, pain everywhere, but I liked it and I’m so grateful. And here I am.”
After that season, he returned to Blackburn, where uncertainty loomed regarding his playing time at Ewood Park due to being behind Jason Steele. Nevertheless, he had matured and was ready, both mentally and physically.
“Those at the Champions League final had a few more days, so I got there on the Wednesday night,”
Just across the level crossing where the Chattanooga train travels, through the trees, lies the World Cup base that Spain has established at Baylor prep school, a mere three miles from the city. Training has concluded for the day, and Raya’s teammates are waiting for him to join them on the golf course before heading back to their hotel opposite the downtown aquarium. They have been together for two weeks, starting in Las Rozas, 25 kilometers northwest of Madrid; if all goes as planned, they will spend another five together, concluding in New Jersey, rivals before but united now.
“I arrived a bit before Fabián [Ruiz]. I was saying hello to some of the others in reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did. I couldn’t really talk [to him] after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting … I was happy for him that he could lift the trophy for a second time.” Raya shares. “The thing is that when you lose a Champions League final, when you get there for the first time in 20 years and then you lose on penalties, it destroys you inside,”
“I left there with my head held high because of the work we had done all year but I was broken inside because we were so, so, so, so close … “ There’s a pause. “You don’t know when you’ll play another one or even if you will play another one,” might not fully capture his feelings. “When I went home, I was broken. We stayed [in Budapest] over night and travelled the next morning. That night is very, very hard. The following morning too. [But] then you reach the Emirates stadium, you see the fans and that lifts you. When you come out on the bus with the Premier League trophy and see all the people, what it means to them, you realise what you’ve done. “Personally, those were very, very hard moments but you take a step back and look at it with perspective. You think about the way the club was a few years ago and the way it is now, how each year we got better in the Champions League, how we won the league for the first time in over 20 years … and that gets a smile out of you. That’s when you think next year we can do better, and win the Champions League.” the goalkeeper confesses. “Why aren’t we talking about David Raya? It’s unbelievable. It’s terrifying.”
There is a moment of silence. “It’s natural with Joan and Unai being in Spain. I’ve been away a very long time. I remember the first time I came to selección, people asked who I was.” Raya continues. “The idea never crossed my mind,”
“I always wanted to play for Spain and never thought about [England]: I wouldn’t have felt it, I would have felt an outsider. However long I was in England, I feel Spanish.”
Now, he aims to secure the World Cup like his idol, Iker Casillas.
Despite being recognized as the best goalkeeper in the Premier League and arguably in Europe last season, earning the Golden Glove for the third consecutive year, Raya did not start Spain’s opening match against Cape Verde. Nor did Joan Garcia, La Liga’s best. Instead, Athletic Club’s Unai Simón took the field. The fact that Simón has been the No. 1 for six years now did not stop that from becoming a major topic of discussion surrounding a stable and successful team.
This debate has primarily focused more on Garcia than Raya, at least until this year’s Champions League spotlight placed Raya at the forefront. Not playing for Madrid or Barcelona means lacking a strong support system. When he announced his squad, Luis de la Fuente, tired of the Simón/García discussions, remarked: “Some look for a debate or a headline, but competition is good,” Raya expressed gratitude for the support. Being in England, perhaps he felt overlooked? “I don’t think there was a debate then,” he muses. “That one is harder, quite honestly,”
It’s not an exaggeration. Back in March 2022, the question “Here, you’re exposed to the world, but you don’t have the pressure of wondering if you’ll make it to the end of the month. Media and public exposure comes with being a footballer and if you’re going to play at this level you have to be ready. I don’t find it difficult. I know I’ll make mistakes. Not everyone is going to like you. I’ll leave the debate for others.” truly was the headline across multiple outlets. Having spent his entire professional career in England since departing Cornella at 16, he was called up after having played just 15 top-flight games. He could have even represented England. “Sure, it’s different with goalkeepers: only one can play. But we work together every day and we’re close. We help each other. The position is in very good hands, whoever plays. You come with an open mind, try to help – whatever your role. I’m very competitive but I always respect what the manager asks.” he states. “You treat everyone the same way,”
“When you’re first choice you can’t treat anyone badly; when you are second or third choice you can’t treat anyone badly either. I have a good relationship with Kepa [Arrizabalaga], with Unai, with Tommy Setford, and with Joan, just as I had with [Álex] Remi[ro]. If a teammate’s down, it’s up to you to pick him up. They do the same for you. People say [competing] goalkeepers don’t get on well: I have always got on well with my teammates and I hope I always will. If the atmosphere wasn’t good, it would be very hard to work. “It’s joy to be here. It’s my second World Cup and it’s a dream. I’ve had a successful year at Arsenal: I won my third Golden Glove and the Premier League. When you’re little you think about the World Cup. I was 15 when Spain won it in 2010 and I live this with total happiness and enthusiasm. It’s not every day you can be at a World Cup.” he explains. If one word he consistently returns to is “naturally.” How do you handle the debate? Naturally. How do you cope with not being the first choice for your country, knowing you’ll likely be away for six weeks without playing? Naturally. How do you and your teammates interact, given that you’re all competitors? Naturally. He’s experienced similar situations before. Remember the discussions when he joined an Arsenal team that already had Aaron Ramsdale? Even when he first arrived at Southport, he was one of eight goalkeepers.
He chuckles now. “I don’t think there was a debate then,” he remarks. The level of scrutiny is different now, presenting another type of pressure. “That one is harder, to be honest,” Raya admits. “Here, you’re under the world’s gaze, but you don’t have the anxiety of wondering if you’ll make it to the end of the month. Media and public attention is part of being a footballer, and if you want to compete at this level, you must be prepared. I don’t find it challenging. I know I’ll make mistakes. Not everyone will like me. I’ll leave the debates to others.”
“Certainly, it’s unique for goalkeepers: only one can play. But we collaborate daily and maintain close relationships. We support one another. The position is in capable hands, regardless of who plays. You arrive with an open mindset, aiming to contribute – whatever your role. I’m very competitive, but I always respect what the manager requests.”
“You treat everyone equally,” Raya adds. “As the first choice, you can’t treat anyone poorly; if you’re the second or third choice, you can’t do that either. I have a positive relationship with Kepa [Arrizabalaga], Unai, Tommy Setford, and Joan, just as I did with [Álex] Remiro. If a teammate is feeling down, it’s your responsibility to uplift them. They do the same for you. People say that competing goalkeepers don’t get along well: I have always had good relationships with my teammates, and I hope to continue that way. A poor atmosphere would make it very difficult to work.”
“It’s a joy to be here. It’s my second World Cup, and it’s a dream come true. I enjoyed a successful year at Arsenal: winning my third Golden Glove and the Premier League. As a child, I dreamed of the World Cup. I was 15 when Spain secured victory in 2010, and I experience this moment with complete joy and eagerness. It’s not every day you get to participate in a World Cup.”
Not everyone has that chance, especially not those starting out at Southport. But here stands David Raya. “And Max Crocombe,” he adds.
