Mikel Arteta is starting Kepa Arrizabalaga because he has effectively been Arsenal’s cup goalkeeper this season and has played the whole Carabao Cup run, so Arteta wants to reward that continuity and form in the final.

Quick Scoop: Why Kepa Is Starting

  • Kepa has been the main keeper in Arsenal’s Carabao Cup campaign, while David Raya has remained first choice in the Premier League.
  • Reports say Arteta decided to “keep faith” with Kepa for the final vs Manchester City at Wembley, rather than switch back to Raya just for the showpiece game.
  • This is a pretty common approach in modern football: managers often stick with the goalkeeper who played the earlier cup rounds as a reward and for dressing-room harmony.
  • Fans on forums are repeating the same logic: Kepa “got us to the final, he deserves to start the final as well,” reflecting that it would look like a loss of trust if he were dropped now.

Other angles fans are talking about

  • Man-management: Keeping Kepa in goal shows trust and can boost morale among squad players who usually only get cup minutes.
  • Risk factor: Some supporters think it’s “risky” not to use your league No.1 (Raya) in a final, but accept that dropping Kepa after the whole run would cause bigger dressing-room issues.
  • Timing: The decision has been framed as a deliberate, thought-through call made in the days leading up to the final, not a last-minute panic choice.

In forum terms, the short version of “why is Kepa starting?” is basically:
He’s the designated cup keeper, he earned it by playing the route to Wembley, and Arteta is backing him rather than ripping up the hierarchy on final day.

TL;DR: Kepa is starting because he’s been Arsenal’s Carabao Cup keeper all season, got them to the final, and Arteta has chosen loyalty and continuity over switching back to Raya for one game.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.