Arsenal are in the midst of negotiations with Aaron Ramsey over extending his current contract further than the summer of 2019. The bosses at Emirates have learned from the drawn-out messy battle the club had to endure with Alexis Sanchez and are ready to reward one of their longest serving players.
Even though Ramsey is not as decorated as his teammate Mesut Ozil, he is one of the key figures in the Arsenal lineup and is held in high regards by Arsene Wenger himself. The Wales international has been with the side ever since the summer of 2008 and has racked up 318 appearances for the club so far managing 54 goals and 53 assists.
He has returned from injury and has just registered his first club hat-trick in the side’s 5-1 win over Everton on Saturday. After returning from injury, Ramsey did not show the slightest bit of rustiness and completely took over the game from the box-to-box role. Making the backdoor runs and finding pockets of space is one of his best qualities along with an ability to link up his teammates in tight spaces.
He struggled in his first game back against Swansea City last week, which the Gunners lost 1-3 at Liberty Stadium but he did more than enough to back it up in the next game. However, now that Ozil has tied down his services to the club till the summer of 2021 and Henrikh Mkhitaryan has arrived to take up the similar creative role, how much will Ramsey feature under Wenger?
Jack Wilshere has made the long-awaited return to the starting XI and has been one of the best players for the Gunners this season. Even after missing multiple seasons with injury, Wilshere has taken over the holding midfield role alongside Granit Xhaka and has looked impressive so far.
Even though Ramsey was selected ahead of him in the past two games, Wenger knows that the Cardiff City academy product is better suited to a more offensive role rather than the defensive duties of the deeper positions. Now the Frenchman has to choose between the two on the regular basis and this will be a factor in the type of contract, the club will be ready to offer Ramsey.
Winning the Europa League should be on the top of the priority list now that Arsenal are still 5 points behind Liverpool in the 6th spot of the points table. Contending for the trophy while still challenging for a top 4 finish will require the rare talents of Aaron Ramsey and the Arsenal management should consider his true value before making a decision.
