A Fanbase Divided
For some reason, even after coming back from a horrifying injury layoff, having one of the best individual seasons an Arsenal player has ever had, scoring countless world class goals and scoring two FA Cup winners, the Arsenal fan base continues to be divided over Aaron Ramsey.
How? He has been at the club now for over ten years, and has done things in huge games worthy of making him a club legend. But too many have been taught at the Piers Morgan School of Arsenal Fans, and either think that Ramsey doesn’t offer enough and is too timid on the ball, or is too reckless and loses the ball too often.
This is the type of player Unai Emery and Arsenal need, unpredictable in the final third, arriving late into the box, but comfortable enough on the ball in a possession based system, the classic Arsenal attacker. But fans continue to deride him, and now he won’t sign a contract, and the same fans think it’s about money.
Whatever his motivations are, if he leaves Arsenal, the club is losing a legend. But the reaction has been way too understated, with more Arsenal fans seemingly upset that Pogba might leave Man Utd, than the notion that Aaron Ramsey might become his replacement.
Statistically Speaking
The key stat straight off the bat, the only player since Ramsey’s debut in 2007 to have scored as many FA Cup final winners is Didier Drogba, fine company for the Welshman.
Since his astonishing season in 2013-14 where he dragged Arsenal through a trying year, almost single handed, he has never failed to be involved in less than nine league goals in a season in which he’s played more than 20 games.
He is the textbook definition of a dynamic box to box midfielder, visibly displaying passion and desire for the club that turn him from a promising youngster into an exceptional talent, much like Matteo Guendouzi this year. Last season, Arsenal’s worst for over twenty years, he stood out with 15 goal contributions in only 24 appearances. Fitness has of course been a problem for Ramsey, but there should be no doubt that this man has kept us going through some of our toughest tests.
Club Legend
Other clubs will be scrambling for his signature, yet we seem unfazed about letting him walk out. He could get into any team in the world, and improve them. Yet the loudest sections of the Arsenal fanbase show utter derision towards him, derision that a player of his quality doesn’t deserve (which of course has happened before).
He’s already notched two assists this season in the league (joint top in the club with Lacazette), and always looks dangerous in the final third, averaging 1.6 key passes per game, the highest at Arsenal this season.
The way he plays is chaotic, darting runs here and there which may be what confuses some fans, but certainly confuses the opposition. Aaron Ramsey plays like a man that doesn’t care about stats, only about getting involved in the action. And yet his stats are still hugely impressive, particularly for a player that Arsenal seem wary about renewing the contract of. In my eyes, that would be the biggest loss to the team this year.
