Arsenal’s David Raya seemed very completely different at 19 – individuals are simply realising why

Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya has stunned football fans with his youthful appearance at 29 compared to what he looked like at 19.

A post on Twitter/X went viral after showing a side-by-side view of Raya now and when he was 19 – prompting some shocked reactions from supporters who feel he looks even younger now. Fans are now just discovering why the Arsenal keeper’s appearance has changed – a serious injury he sustained while playing for Blackburn Rovers.

The Spanish goalkeeper was involved in a collision with West Brom striker Jay Rodriguez during a game, which led to his hospitalisation and the use of a protective mask for two weeks when he made his return. Raya then had reconstructive surgery.

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One baffled X user wrote: “What a glow up”, and another added: “The glow up is insane”. A third joked: “Broke his nose and he aged backwards”, while another said: “Ain’t no way that’s Raya”.

While the injury turned out to be less serious than initially believed, Raya still opted for surgery, which was delayed until the season with Blackburn ended. Back in November 2018, Raya told the Lancashire Telegraph that the scary experience never actually affected his ability in goal.

“It’s not impeding me to breathe or anything and if I had the surgery now [during that season], I would be out for six to eight weeks,” he explained. “I think it’s the right decision to wait, even though my nose isn’t the same. It can happen to anyone, it can happen with a header to a centre-back, so that won’t change my type of play or anything.”

Tony Mowbray, Rovers boss at the time, described the incident and revealed the severity of Raya’s injury. “The players were feeling sick with what they saw,” he told BBC Sport.

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“He is in hospital. The bone at the top has been pushed into the skull almost and the nose is sort of hanging off really. The players could not look at it, it was that bad.”

Burnley forward Rodriguez also shared his feelings about the incident. The ex-West Brom player admitted that his involvement left him feeling shattered.

“It’s not nice to see. I was chasing the ball, I tried to get out of the way but I’ve caught him with the top of my foot,” he said. “I’ve been told he’s gone to hospital and I’m gutted about that.”

Since his injury, Raya’s career has been on the rise. After nearly 100 appearances for Rovers, he joined Brentford where his standout performances over four seasons attracted the attention of Mikel Arteta.

The Spaniard lured him to Arsenal, initially on loan in 2023, before making the move permanent this summer. Raya has since cemented his position as Arsenal’s first-choice goalkeeper and one of the Premier League’s top shot-stoppers.