AARON RAMSDALE and his Arsenal team-mates must show mental toughness in the final eight matches to win the Premier League title.
But boss Mikel Arteta will have no worries over goalkeeper Ramsdale, who has shown northern grit throughout a tough journey to reach the top.
Aaron Ramsdale produced a series of stunning late saves for Arsenal in last Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Liverpool
As a kid, the hungry Gunners No 1 trained in all conditions, including a swamp at Fred Barber’s soccer school in Stoke.
That tough schooling moulded Ramsdale’s character which will be vital in the pressure cooker of the title race as Arsenal bid to hold off champions Manchester City.
England keeper Ramsdale, 24, stepped up in the 2-2 draw at Liverpool last Sunday with a series of stunning late saves to secure a valuable point.
Barber told SunSport: “I first saw Aaron when he was ten at my Friday hourly sessions.
“He was a skinny kid, a little runt. He had a cheeky face and I liked that because I was a character too.
“I treated the kids like professional keepers and you either worked hard or thought, ‘This is too hard and drift off’.
“Some keepers would be sick because the drills pushed them to the limits.
“As a coach I was trying to find out how far they could go and what they were made of.
“It didn’t frighten Aaron. His attitude was brilliant. The more I pushed him the more he wanted it.
“Kids can be emotional but he worked hard. He had that northern grit.
“I grew up in the north east and Aaron is from Stoke, both industrial and working class backgrounds. You have to be a grafter to get to where you want to go.
“People think he’s got all the Adidas gear on and he’s playing for Arsenal.
“But they don’t realise how he has learnt his trade playing for Chesterfield, Wimbledon, Sheffield United, Bournemouth.
“Only one in a 1,000 make it but the ones who graft tend to make it more than the gifted ones.
“When you cross the white line and have the pressure of playing in front of crowds you have to be able to handle it.
“Aaron is mentally strong. He plays in the Premier League, he’s gifted but he’s a normal lad who has had to work hard to get there.”
Barber himself made almost 400 football league appearances for clubs like Darlington, Walsall and Peterborough over a 17-year playing career.
The 59-year-old, now Crewe’s goalkeeper coach, freelanced for several top-flight clubs before he was appointed Sam Allardyce’s keeper coach at Bolton in 2004.
Ramsdale’s inspiration as a goalkeeper was Bolton stopper Jussi Jaaskelainen
Barber, who wore a mask during his career, coached and developed the likes of Jussi Jaaskelainen, Ali Al-Habsi, Adam Bogdan and Tomasz Kuszczak.
But Ramsdale showed his desire to join those Prem keepers even from an early age.
Barber recalled: “I remember the training pitch was underwater. It was tanking it down, thunder and lightning and I sat in my car thinking, ‘There’s nobody coming to the session. That’s great, I can go home and I won’t get drenched’.
“Then the little b****r turned up!
“Only two or three die-hards would be there and Aaron was one of them.
“We were training in a swamp. We tried to find a dry piece of grass to train, it was like the Kes movie where they were covered in mud.
“You look for characters. You can get fair weather footballers but Aaron was there every time rain or shine, ice and snow. He’d be shivering but it’s all part of your armour.
“80 per cent of football is in your head, so you have to be mentally tough because every mistake is highlighted on television.
“It has killed some goalkeepers like Peter Enckleman or Massimo Taibi. We didn’t see much of them after high-profile mistakes.
“You have to take the flak as well as the good. Mistakes will hurt Aaron inside but it’s how you deal with it.”
Barber took Ramsdale to Bolton’s academy during his teenage years along with his own son Jonathan, also a promising keeper.
Twice a week, the pair would leave school at three, get a lift from Barber’s wife to Knutsford where the then Trotters keeper coach would pick them up and take them to a two-hour training session at Bolton and then drop them home at 9.30pm.
But Ramsdale – against Barber’s wishes – was released by Bolton’s academy at the age of 15 because he was too small and getting lobbed too often.
Barber added: “He’s had his knocks, released by Bolton but he was like ‘I’ll show people’.
“It has made him hungrier and he’s proved people wrong.”
Barber sees similar traits in Ramsdale, who faces West Ham today, as Jaaskelainen, who had a successful 15-year Prem career with Bolton and the Hammers.
He added: “Aaron is just like Jussi. Blonde hair, same stance with their hands and feet.
“The save Aaron pulled off against Mo Salah against Liverpool last week was similar to ones Jussi has made.
“I’d still say Jussi is the best keeper I’ve coached. Aaron still has a way to go.
“His kicking is better than Jussi and his shot stopping is up there but Jussi played into his forties.
“Goalkeepers make mistakes and don’t mature until they are 28 but Aaron has another four years before he comes into his prime.”
Kind-hearted Ramsdale donated 40 Premier League match balls to Barber’s soccer school worth up to £4,000 with costs spiralling post- Covid and also name-checked one of his first coaches after his Anfield heroics to show he has not forgotten his roots.
Barber said: “I’ve had Premier League and international keepers representing England, Finland and Oman.
“But I’ve never had a Premier League winner and that would be a great achievement.
“It’s comic book stuff, something out of the Victor or the Beano.
“For someone to achieve their dream of playing in the Premier League, play for England and win the league would be a fairytale.
“It’s like winning the lottery. He’s a boy out of Stoke who has done good.
“It was great that he gave me a name check ? now the kids will believe that I did coach him!”
