AARON RAMSDALE'S dad has singled out two football pundits for criticism following comments they made on the Arsenal star.
Ramsdale, 25, had a sticky start to the season before being dropped from the Gunners starting XI in favour of David Raya.
Ramsdale, who was selected in Gareth Southgate's latest England squad, came in for criticism from Jamie Carragher for his "Oscar" clapping during the North London derby.
Father, Nick, launched a staunch defence of his son at the time, labelling the Sky Sports pundit "a disgrace".
Speaking on the Highbury Squad podcast with former Arsenal ace Kevin Campbell and presenter Sophie Nicolaou, Nick clarified his scathing comments further.
Asked about wanting to protect his son from "unfounded" criticism, he said: "It's the unfounded stuff you find difficult. Football is all about opinion.
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"But when people start questioning Edward or Oliver, or Caroline or me or Aaron then you have to speak up. If somebody says he's not a good goalkeeper or I don't like his attitude fair enough.
"But if you then start questioning the way he was brought up or the way he's perceived then – and I think justly – the hackles go up on the back of my neck and you have to say stuff.
"Sometimes you find it difficult. Mr Carragher was talking like my lad was a phoney but he doesn't know Aaron, he doesn't know if he's a phoney or not.
"He was on Sky judging my son and he doesn't even know him."
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5However, Carragher was not the only player in Ramsdale senior's crosshairs, also highlighting talkSPORT pundit Danny Murphy for his own take on the matter.
Speaking on the former Bournemouth and Sheffield United star's character, Nick said: "Aaron's character is all, not nothing, all.
"He knows where he's come from, he knows who's helped him and he knows that you don't just win with 11 players… now it's a squad thing.
"You don't sulk. The same as one of the best ones ever Conor Coady, you look at him for England with Tyrone Mings they were always laughing and always happy and they weren't playing.
"You need them type of people. Conor's character is the same as Aaron's.
"But if you don't know people how can you judge them? I wasn't playing golf at the time I was watching the game and okay so I'd had a couple of beers but I didn't say anything abusive."
On Murphy directly, Nick said: "I was in the back of the Mirror or Sky Sports and then I thought I died down. And then Danny Murphy was giving his ten-pence worth.
"I was asked to go on talkSPORT to reply to what Carragher had said. But I'd said what I said in the heat of the moment, it wasn't for debate. I didn't have to justify it.
Aaron's character is all, not nothing, all.
"I mean I justify it now because I'm with you two and I know for a fact it's not going be misconstrued what I've said, whereas I'm just adding more fuel to the fire if I'd gone on talkSPORT.
"Really and truly I should've done because the game of golf I played was absolutely terrible so I wasted four hours of walking around a golf course.
"But Murphy again, he took it to the football side of it and it wasn't the football side it was the personal side."
He added: "They don't make a distinction. They think there's a crossover between professional and personal but there isn't.
"They would be the first two, if somebody came up to them while they were having a meal and started giving them grief, to say 'excuse me I'm having a meal now, I'm not at work'.
"So they can differentiate between when they're at work and not at work."
Nick went on to emphasise his comments are his own and are not a reflection of his son's.
Ramsdale previously left Gooners icon Ian Wright appearing stunned after he admitted on the Behind The Game podcast that he struggles to concentrate for a full 90 minutes in a match.
And he explained this was the reason he interacted with fans in the match.
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He has not started a Premier League match under Mikel Arteta since the 3-1 win over Manchester United in early September.
Ramsdale has also been snubbed for Champions League games, with his last game in an Arsenal shirt coming in the 3-1 Carabao Cup defeat to West Ham at the start of November.
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