Who is Justin Bijlow? Arsenal's Aaron Ramsdale replacement on Mikel Arteta's summer radar
The Feyenoord shot-stopper has been lighting up the Eredivisie this season and could be on his way to north London this summer
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta could be looking to replace out-of-favour goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale this summer despite previously claiming that he's likely to be at the club next season.
The England international saw his No.1 spot in between the sticks at the Emirates Stadium snatched out from underneath him as Brentford shot-stopper David Raya was bought in on loan, leaving Ramsdale to make just three appearances in the last seven months.
Having been asked back in April if there was a suggestion he would remain at Arsenal this summer, Arteta claimed: "A suggestion? There is a big reality that Aaron will be here because he is our player and has a contract."
Since then, rumours sparked around Ramsdale and a potential move to Newcastle United but those were quickly shut down by the goalkeeper himself, as he took to social media writing: "News to me [laughing face emoji]." Despite that, reports from The Telegraph suggest Newcastle are willing to pay around £15 million for Ramsdale, with the offer of a five-year contract on the table.
While it looks very likely Ramsdale leaves, Arteta and sporting director Edu will be certain to look at replacements with one name on their shortlist emerging - that of Feyenoord's Justin Bijlow. With that being said, football.london has taken a look at how Bijlow could affect the Gunners for years to come if he was to arrive in the summer...
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Justin Bijlow in profile
The 26-year-old has consistently put in impressive showings under new Liverpool manager Arne Slot at Feyenoord over the last three seasons, with the shot-stopper having kept 54 clean sheets in his 143 first-team appearances for the Eredivisie side - a rate of over one in every three matches.
Bijlow's role in Slot's Feyenoord side was very much a modern sweeper role, with the Dutchman having averaged an enormous 3.08 defensive actions outside of his penalty area per 90 minutes according to FBref, compared to David Raya's 1.56 average from this season and Ramsdale's 1.13 average from the 2022/23 season.
In fact, Bijlow plays much more of a sweeper role than even Manchester City's Ederson or Liverpool's Alisson, both of whom are renowned for their use of the ball at their feet and their quick, well-placed judgements on when to come towards and close down the attacker or stay back on their line.
Bijlow also ranks ahead of both Raya and Ramsdale in crosses stopped percentages, and is equal to Raya in shot-creating actions across the season, despite having played less than half his total minutes after a wrist fracture and a separate calf injury mid-season. All of this points to Arteta possibly wanting a much more dynamic goalkeeping setup, even more different to the one he has now which saw Ramsdale's position as number one uprooted before his very eyes in favour of loanee Raya.
With a permanent deal for Raya yet to materialise, Bijlow could be a great option over the summer if Arteta wants to secure himself a young, talented star for the future that can help him build a core for next season's campaign. However, he will face challenges from other Premier League sides, with Liverpool and Manchester United among those named as potential suitors.
Internationally, he made his debut for the Dutch national team in September 2021 in a 1–1 draw against Norway during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, before keeping his first clean sheet three days later in a 4-0 win over Montenegro. He was also part of Louis Van Gaal's 26-man 2022 Qatar World Cup squad, but didn't make an appearance at the tournament. He has since been capped six more times - the latest coming in the Nations League Playoffs last summer.