With the news now confirmed that Aaron Ramsey will be leaving Arsenal when his contract expires at the end of the season, the question becomes whether it was the right decision or not.
The Gunners are said to be working on a smaller budget with no Champions League football, leading to them withdrawing their contract offer to the midfielder.
Still the contract withdrawal has to be questioned given what the Welshman has provided Arsenal over the past few seasons. The midfielder has been a creative spark mixing goals with assists delivering a real threat in the final third which he lacked in his earlier years partly due to the terrible leg break he suffered plus he needed the time it takes some younger players to get up to speed with what is required to become an established Premier League player.
Ramsay is a top level professional now both internationally and at club level and there will be no shortage of suitors for his services you would have to think, so why Arsenal would risk potentially losing him to a direct rival seems strange.
However the Welshman does still have questions over his fitness and ability to play a full season without suffering frustrating injuries and this may be playing a role in Arsenal’s stance.
Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United are amongst the Premier League teams linked with the attacking midfield star as well as European giants Real Madrid and AC Milan. Surely allowing Ramsay to move abroad is one thing but letting him join a main Premier League rival can’t be wise.
Fans on Twitter are very much split on whether allowing Ramsey to leave on a free transfer is the best thing to do:
Great servant to the club, a leader in the team , purely gunners. Would love him to stay ?
— nazwan (@SqreNaim) 1 November 2018
Disappointed, handled in a horrible way by the club!
— Amirali Mansourfar (@amirali_man) 1 November 2018
Losing a tremendous asset and a brilliant player. AFC silly not offer him an improved contract. Ozil on a load and shows up 1/7 games. Rambo is consistent. AFC need to look at the way they handle contracts
— #toosh (@t00sh84) 1 November 2018
thank good god hes leaving
— Tyronne Suchi (@guccisuchi) 1 November 2018
I think it must be more that he doesn’t quite fit Emery’s system. But he’s a fantastic player one that I would argue is good enough to shape things around. Although he probably plays best in the same position as Ozil which is a problem. I’d have kept him.
— GoonerBritt (@Goonerjon) 1 November 2018
Over the moon, shame it’s not sooner to be honest…
— Pierce Robinson (@PierceRobinson_) 2 November 2018
Never saw Ramsey as a top footballer but its a shame that we let him go for nothing.
May this be the last player we simply wash away for free.— Mange (@MangebengaMange) 2 November 2018
Let him go he gave us his service. His rather inconsistent play is frustrating for me. If honest after his injury he only gave us one super season and all that went to his head. Otherwise nice chap but we need good high intensity players.
— MrNawa (@MrNawa2) 2 November 2018
Well,he messed everything up by himself by asking for too much for too long. Arsenal is different now. He’ll survive and Arsenal won’t miss him.
— Ralph Bruce (@RalphBruce16) 2 November 2018
All he does is get forward. As a cm he doesn’t dictate play.
— Bre (@brendendizzy) 2 November 2018
The 27-year-old doesn’t seem to want to leave, but it very much comes down to how high his wage demands were. The Arsenal hierarchy are said to be seeking value for money in the transfer market, and they believe Ramsey’s contribution to the team doesn’t merit the salary he is asking for.
Still, they will certainly miss Ramsey’s ability to provide an end product in the final third. He scored 11 goals and provided 12 assists last season in just 32 appearances.
