Colombia international David Ospina has confirmed he will remain at Arsenal next season despite the ongoing interest from Turkish club Fenerbahce. The 28-year-old played second fiddle to Petr Cech for most of the previous season, managing just a solitary start in the Premier League.
Earlier in May, it had been suggested that the shot-stopper was close to joining Fenerbahce after finalising terms over a four-year contract. However, Ospina appears to have had a change of thought, and he is now prepared to fight for his position at the Emirates.
“I have a contract here, I’m happy and I’m going to fight to the end, I want to continue and win a job. That’s what I’m working for, I’ve been working for three years and now I’m waiting for the opportunity,” he told The Sun.
Ospina joined the Gunners from French club Nice following a successful 2014 World Cup, and he was initially seen as the deputy to Wojciech Szczesny.
However, the Pole was dropped to the bench following his smoking incident in the showers in the Southampton defeat in January, and this enabled Ospina to become a Premier League regular during the second half of the 2014/15 campaign.
With the arrival of Cech in the summer of 2015, Ospina was pushed back to the backup role, and his position has remained unchanged since, although he has earned valuable playing time in the Cup and European games.
With Szczesny having departed for Juventus earlier this summer, the need to keep Ospina has become more of a necessity, and the Colombian has now assured that he will be staying put for the upcoming season.
Cech, 35, had a couple of odd performances for the Gunners last season – including an awful pass which led to a goal after ex-club Chelsea, but he is likely to start as the first-choice next term with Ospina hoping for a probable lapse from the former Czech international.
Ospina notched 14 appearances across all competitions for Arsenal last season – including one in the FA Cup final against Chelsea, which the Gunners won by a 2-1 scoreline.
