It might seem a bit mean to aim some harsh criticism in the direction of the Arsenal and Wales midfield star Aaron Ramsey, because a string of injury problems which began on the first game of the season has stopped him from building up a head of steam.
But when the Gunners have needed the Welshman recently he has not delivered and that was true again of his performance in the damaging defeat at home to Watford last night. Once again you might think I am being hard on the lad as anyone can deflect a shot into their own net as Rambo did for the Hornets’ opening goal, but it did seem to be a bit of a lightweight attempt to block it.
He was also at fault in the build up to their second, making a weak attempt at a tackle before giving up and failing to track back and help the defence. Being a central midfielder you need to do both sides of the game well and to be perfectly honest Ramsey has not been so good at either for some time now.
What really winds me up is that he excels at both defending and attacking when he pulls on the Wales shirt and he puts in much more of a shift on international duty as well. The boss has revealed that it is a calf strain this time and even though it leaves us a bit short for the Chelsea match on Saturday with Xhaka suspended, Cazorla injured and Elneny away, do you think we might actually be better off without Ramsey?
D.N.
Ox and Le Coq should be a good enough pairing in mid…
Against Kante and Matic. Good luck.
@Twig
Still think they can handle it…
who would you put then, Ramsey again?
A few weeks ago I thought that Xhaka-Ramsey partnership was going to be the key to our season. If they stepped up individually and collectively then I thought we had a chance at catching Chelsea. Well how did that work out? For different reasons I think they are both mentally week. Still hold out hope for Xhaka at Arsenal. Ramsey? Well I still think there is a very good player in there but don’t think we’ll see it at Arsenal. Aaron, if you visit this site, please prove me wrong
@Trudeau
I think Aaron wants out. He seems frustrated that he didn’t get any offers after showing his skills at the Euro’s…
Yes please let him go. May be united still want him and can pay him 200k + to sit on the bench !
He would have for sure… just cos it wasn’t widespread doesn’t mean it didn’t happen
Good riddance with Ramsey. I hope he doesnt play a match for us again. Rubbish player.
it’s been so long since he became rubbish, but some a**lickers in here kept praising him like he never lost that half a season magic ever. whenever he plays we end up losing or draw, his absence is very good to the team
We’ll have to change our formation against Chelsea
Welbeck Sanchez
Iwobi Ox Coq Walcott
Gibbs Koscielny Mustafi Bellerin
Cech
finally!, someone that sees what is so obvious but most dnt see it
There is two key reasons why Ramsey performs well for Wales, and not Arsenal:
1) Wales manager Coleman said during the summer, that the system he plays is built around Ramsey and Bale, his best two attackers. So when one plays in a system specifically designed for yourself, then you’re more likely to perform well.
2) The system at Arsenal is very rigid, is never changed, and is not designed around certain players. Wenger expects players to perform well in his system, even if they are not suited to it. For example, Mertesacker was always a huge liability at the back because his lack of pace, and mobility. He didn’t suit the high defensive line that Wenger’s system requires. Ramsey doesn’t suit the system because he doesn’t have the technical ability needed to pull off the intricate football, that helps our all important transitional play flourish. He always has a poor first touch, as a consequence, then gets closed down quickly, and is then forced to turn the wrong way to protect the ball, which then only leaves him with a sideways or backwards pass. Or he does have time, but spends too long in possession, or finally it’s the poor accuracy of his passing. Not to mention his terrible positional sense.
Overall, Wenger’s system is heavily reliant on quality passing, and technical ability, especially in central midfield when one doesn’t get a lot of time on the ball. Ramsey cannot do this, and has proved so over a very long period. So it begs the question…how on earth is Ramsey still an Arsenal player (especially considering his injury record as well), and why does Wenger start him at every opportunity?
Definitely the boss sees something in him that we lot don’t.
Teams and tactics are built around the main player and currently it looks like everything should be built around Sanchez and rightly so.
As far as Wales is concerned Bale gets so much attention that Ramsey is afforded a lot of space and he can do his stuff. But for Arsenal he does not work and I am not sure why he is still sticking around. Lets’s hope Wenger will take Ramsey with him.
just look at Ramsey on our first goal and ask that question again
Should this question even be asked?
We need a midfield pairing fast..
Even my wife, a Filipina Arsenal fan for 22 years, complains whenever she sees his name in the teamsheet. She asks me why does he get chosen over other, far better, players. I can never answer this question so any help most appreciated.
we all think the same mate. Ramsey can come back form a long time injury and gets straight to the first 11, but others have to take sometime to gain match fitness by coming off the bench and Wenger can have good explanation about them, but his favorite son is always match fit no matter how long he stays out injured
and he always seems to get a nod in the team in any position, like RW and CM even if better players are fit and just chilling on the bench
Even with Ramsey fit, I wouldn’t want to see him start against Chelsea, the game is too important.
I would like to see us use a diamond formation in the middle, for the players we have available and knowing Chelsea will want to beat us for revenge as much as rivalry…
Holding CM: Coquelin
B2B1: Ox
B2B2: M-Niles
ACM: Ozil
CF: Alexis & Theo
He is another lord Bendtner…. only turns up for national team
Lord Ramsey??
As a player I wish Ramsey to recover soon considering his past contribution to the club. However, he lost his magic this year and needs to be left out of the team until he is improved. For the sake of Arsenal better performance and success, I prefer to see him out for a longer time. Because, if he is fit to play, surely Wenger will include him in every matches and we will be in trouble as usual. Ramsey is the weakest link in Arsenal’s team. I don’t know how Wenger overlooked this problem as a manager which is obvious to every body else.