Today we have the first in a series of blogs on the rise and rise of Aaron Ramsey, which with a bit of luck will see some new bloggers popping their cherries.
I’m not ashamed to say that I wasn’t always Ramsey’s biggest fan. For a long time I quite simply though he was bad. In fact I was positive that he wasn’t good enough. When we discussed the deadwood that needed unloading, I lumped Ramsey in with Park, Djourou, and dare I say it, the great Lord Bendtner. He was a waste of space in my eyes; someone who would hold onto the ball too long in midfield and couldn’t win it back when he lost it. Don’t even get me started on when he played on the wing. There weren’t and still aren’t many footballers that really get my blood boiling. If Arsene bought them they must have something about them. I supported Arshavin for longer than most and was disappointed when both Eduardo and Vela were sold. All of them had shown flashes of brilliance, but dulled for some reason or another; injury, failure to adapt to the Premier League etc. To this day I still believe Arshavin just got too old and lost his fitness. However, something about Aaron just didn’t click with me. I cut him some slack, as I think we all did, after the terrible challenge from the Orc King that could have cleaved Castle Grayskull itself in two. However, by the 2011/2012 season I was frustrated with his lack of progression and felt he would never achieve the heights we had projected for him.
The paragraph you’ve just read was my opinion for about a year. My friends will never let me forget it.
One very important factor in the rise of Rambo is Arsene Wenger. He had potential when signing from Cardiff sure, but potential doesn’t always make a great player. Jay Emmanuel Thomas had potential too. I always saw Jack Wilshere as more talented, and more likely to make it. But Arsene always knew. Before paying 5 million pounds (for a 17 year old from Cardiff that’s nothing to sneeze at) Wenger reportedly flew him out to Switzerland to discuss his future. The boss was commentating at Euro 2008 at the time. Wenger spent over a month watching the best players in Europe and flew Aaron Ramsey out to convince him to join Arsenal. That shows you the belief Wenger had in him right from the beginning. While Ramsey was recovering from injury in 2010, a career threatening double leg break, Wenger signed him to a new long term contract. When others would have abandoned him, Wenger reassured him that he had a future at the club. The following season Jack would have one of his best performances for the club, in the 2-1 win over Barcelona at the Emirates. Aaron who? But Arsene always knew.
We’ve all heard that quote from Wenger: “Once Aaron Ramsey starts scoring he won’t stop”.
And he didn’t. Right up to the final moment of our last and most important game of the season, Aaron Ramsey didn’t stop scoring. But Ramsey’s rise (I’m enjoying the alliteration here) didn’t start in 2013/2014 season. That was just when he finally reached the top of the mountain. That F.A. Cup final goal sends Aaron Ramsey down in Arsenal history. Aaron Ramsey; Drought-Breaker. But it didn’t start there. In December 2012, Ramsey signed a new contract as part of our so called ‘British core’ along with Jenkinson, the Ox, Wilshere and Gibbs. Another show of faith from the boss. He never looked back. At this point I was still unsure of Ramsey’s future at Arsenal. In my eyes he still held the ball for too long, and tried clever tricks in areas of the pitch where he really shouldn’t have. But I began to see a change. Ramsey became very solid defensively. He didn’t score a mountain of goals in 2012/2013 in fact we only saw 1 premier league goal. What we did see however, was the start of the great Aaron Ramsey Engine. He started 17 of our last 20 matches, having previously started only 12 all season. From January onwards, he was indispensable, next to Arteta in midfield, becoming a true box to box player, running the ball between our defence and attack. This was when Ramsey finally set upon his climb with vigour. More and more I found myself admitting Ramsey had played well, had had a good game, had been man of the match. His rise was gathering pace.
Just before the start of last season we got a glimpse of what Ramsey would do. After a great pre-season, Ramsey topped it off with a lovely run from deep to score against Man City, as well as assisting a great goal from Theo (Oh what could have been). He also scored 3 times against Fenerbahce across two legs. It was something we would get used to. He scored against Fulham, Sunderland, Stoke (delightfully), Swansea and Norwich; 5 goals in the first 7 premier league games. By this point in the season we had already run out of superlatives for him. He didn’t have a part in Arsenal’s goal-of-the-season wonder goal against Norwich, so instead took it upon himself to dribble past the entire Norwich defence and score (leaving half of them on the floor behind him). It was Messi-esque. And yes I just made up that word because there are no words to describe how good Ramsey had become. Clearly my opinion has now completely changed. That’s not me back tracking or denying what I had previously believed. Quite simply I couldn’t be stubborn and ignore what was right in front of me. Despite the signing of Mesut Ozil, Ramsey had become Arsenal’s best player, our talisman, our driving force. I’ve not seen a player play like this in midfield for Arsenal for a long time. Fabregas was great he really was, but Ramsey had resurrected the spirit of Patrick Vieira to play at Arsenal’s heart.
What was Ramsey’s best moment of the 2013/2014 season? The goals against Norwich, Liverpool and Dortmund all stand out in my memory, but surely the F.A. Cup final goal takes the crown. His goals had dried up a little in the final moments of the season but when we were desperate, when we really needed someone to pull us out of a hole, Ramsey was there. I remember sitting right at the top of Wembley stadium and feeling despair when we were 2 nil down. I had been at Birmingham too. Surely this couldn’t happen again. Slowly but surely we clawed our way back. Ramsey didn’t have his best game, far from it, but in typical Ramsey fashion he never gave up. I remember a number of shots from outside the box, going high, going wide but inching closer every time, and I vividly remember turning to my dad saying, “I don’t care if he misses, they should keep giving him the ball. Let him shoot”. It was a massive change from my attitude towards Ramsey 18 months previously, where I would groan whenever he touched the ball.
Shoot he did. And score he did. Aaron Ramsey, after his best ever season, after being the best midfielder in England for 12 months, scored the winning goal to win the F.A. Cup for Arsenal. Drought-Breaker. Ramsey has climbed an Everest of injury, abuse and negativity, lots from his own fans. But he never gave up, and now he’s standing at the highest peak with an F.A. Cup winner’s medal and fistful of names he’s proved wrong, including a certain Dutch ex-captain who wanted him sold. He proved me wrong too. But he wouldn’t gloat because he’s not like that.
Aaron Ramsey has made a humble football fan of me. After his last 18 months I never feel I can write any player off no matter how bad they are. People have consistently written off Jenkinson, but I did the same with Ramsey. People wrote off Giroud, but I did the same with Ramsey. Hell I even don’t feel I can write off Tom Cleverly. Don’t get me wrong, I really think he’s shit. But once upon a time I said this guy wasn’t good enough for Arsenal Football Club and I had to eat my words. His name is Aaron Ramsey; Drought-Breaker.
By Tom Papaloizou @TomPapaloizou
Positively Arsenal 
Anicoll
Gawd this is shite.
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I agree with Anicoll. This is an awesome game.
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Awesome? Ive been that bored I’ve started reading Le Groves back catalogue.
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Like I said the other day, DC, Rory Delap’s throw ins are formidable, but I wouldn’t want him anywhere near my team.
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Kuyt is playing his arse off.
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Game’s gone off the boil since that heart-stopping moment when it was held up to enable some geezer to put his boot back on. It’s been struggling ever since to recreate that level of excitement.
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Get this done
Not a player who is on my Christmas card list but Mascherano the bollox tonight
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passenal July 9, 2014 at 9:45 pm
whatever my response .. it will be turned against me… i will though correct your perception slightly cause the conclusions you draw are not correct – the use of that term that shocked you…. is to be understood as a metaphor term mostly to resemble any given player’s passionless attitude on the pitch and the lack of confidence or conviction to stand at that level and deal with the competition, stage …
beyond that, you can accuse me of whatever you wish if it makes you happier… just bear in mind there is a chance you misunderstood it. nothing to do with you… just me with english not being my first language and maybe sometimes it comes out too offensive for your liking. i also realise that there are a few fundamental differences in our criteria of players, and perhaps my honesty in some issues annoys you. finally,i apologise for upsetting you and others if my admiration for suarez is independent of the hypocrisy that is usually associated with him.
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I hate penalties
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Ok I can go to bed…..
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fantastic !..fuck off robin
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Mascherano has had a good tournament. Justice in the end, Higuain’s goal looked onside.
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Goal Fins? he hit the side net didn’t he?
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PG
When are you going to be talking through the arse with Le Pedro?
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Hunter,
What you might call passionless I would admire as an admirable attempt at stoic calmness when your whole fecking team’s defence has gone into meltdown all around you.
Then the lad gets scapegoated for being the only one willing to try, when perhaps he was to you and inexperienced for the deep end playing week in week out in the league. I have been following his progress with the Swiss national team and he has done rather well for them.
I’m not saying he would ever have been a Tony Adams, but if given time he would have been an asset in the club. Wenger has made an effort to protect Gibbs and Jenks more and they are developing their careers better, lessons learnt.
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GP
Oh yes, I’d forgotten about that promise!
A classic back of the school yard fight in the making.
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When he gets back of his holidays and that malingerer Bradyesque7 sorts himself out.
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pedantic george @ 11:49 pm
*coughs*
This is the kind of error that can happen when you watch the game with some passionate Anglo-Argentinians who are jumping and screaming and blocking your view.
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double canister
ok replace the word passionless with soulless. as for stoic calmness and if youre referring to last night’s defensive shambles i have written a post about the goals up to number 5. kindly see the videos/replays and if ive written something wrong please correct me…today at closer look on 6 and 7 i note for 6 that there are two oncoming players for that assist…not one, two…they are not static and waiting for it but moving forward …all they need is lahm to roll it to their direction.. the 7th a great finish but cesar is kneeling….should the keeper get beaten from that angle? would costa rica’s who is more agile and younger and faster let that in ? this wasnt podolski vs neuer (cl) from point black to excuse the lack of reflexes from so close range. if you break it down sideshow bob is to be held directly responsible for his kamikaze run, however even that is at goal 5 and from midfield where he missed the tackle till the germans scored, dante maicon and possibly fernandinho or gustavo are doing figure eights like drunks, unable to go on ball or close space or even hussle germans off ball, or even foul! this was a monumental team and individual collapse but the narrative is to focus on david luiz cause he stands out as a caricature figure.
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When is hunter going to be presenting his case for the appreciation of Arjen Robben?
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I think its RVP up next DC
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hehe dc…you might see that when i read some horseshit like jermaine pennant being at a better level and that players like robben are donkeys…
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Anicoll: “Not a player who is on my Christmas card list but Mascherano the bollox tonight”
He turned into a decent passer since he went to Barcelona. When he played for Liverpool he couldn’t deliver a five meter pass. Now he looks like bleeding Xavi.
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Hunter
My 12:13pm post was about Johann.
I haven’t been one of the ones with a pitch fork looking to lynch David Luiz, far from it. The whole Brasil team was a let down on Tuesday night, especially their midfielders who I thought were abominable.
Sometimes he is quite an entertaining player, and seems a decent sort off the pitch. I would see his playing position as the younger, faster but naive one in a CB pairing when used properly: a sort of Kos type before he partnered up with Per so effectively. I still see him (Luiz) as more useful in midfield.
What the whole Brasil team did to Colombia was inexcusable, Luiz was part of it and I’m sure he was just following team tactics, same as when he was doing Chelsea’s negative tactics.
PSG paying 50m just puts him under the spotlight even more, he is hardly worth a fraction of that! but neither are any other defenders.
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Clasie, Wijnaldum, Janmaat, Blind, De Vrij, Fer, Veltman, Cillessen and Depay are all going to be at their peak in the next world cup. It’s amazing that Holland reached the semi-finals with a squad consisting of so many youngsters. Hats off to Van Gaal. I hope Kluivert or Blind get the helm of this Holland squad for the next Euro.
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sorry george this is not about defending anyone but balance…hummels?? donkey?? and i suppose djourou is a hidden nesta we are all fools not to realise? ok say for luiz i can understand he can give the impression of a donkey but a closer look at the goals conceded shows another picture. a picture which basically neutralises and discredits last nights cheap shots ..either someone wasnt watching properly or he was too eager to pull the trigger out of pure spite and bias.. and it backfired.
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but what psg pay for him is none of anyones business dc…. tell you what… if djourou was good enough maybe hed have an agent to fool people like that too.
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DC: “Sometimes he is quite an entertaining player, and seems a decent sort off the pitch. I would see his playing position as the younger, faster but naive one in a CB pairing when used properly: a sort of Kos type before he partnered up with Per so effectively. I still see him (Luiz) as more useful in midfield.
Luiz is 27 years old already.
He’s never like Koz. Koz knows when to run up the pitch and his marking, passing and reading of the game are off the charts. He doesn’t leave Per by himself and he doesn’t go for glory, fifty meter passes.
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Hunter: “but what psg pay for him is none of anyones business dc…. tell you what… if djourou was good enough maybe hed have an agent to fool people like that too.”
Financially doped clubs like Real Madrid and PSG artificially inflate prices and make it hard for everyone else to compete. If you gave a crap about football you wouldn’t want to see a mediocre player like David Luiz going for that much.
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Gains: Sorry dude just what on earth are you talking about ? Is your horrific criteria on players and cheap shots after historic humiliations based on some noble cause of yours to save football? Cause it looked more like the spiteful comments of a 7 year old. Am i a lesser fan of the game for showing a realistic balance compared to your donkey wooshwacka on players like hummels suarez luiz in comparison to players like djourou that have failed when given the opportunities? .
You made a claim about levels and i countered it emphatically. You didnt like your “authority” being challenged and then chose a 7-1 humiliation to take cheap shots in an attempt to give credit to your words. When i asked you to explain which goals can be contributed to luiz you started moving goalposts talking about organisation, your mate arrigo, and now how it was all your don quixotian attempt to save football from price inflation and possibly…save the children too.
Still you have not showed me or anyone in which goals luiz is responsible, which basically neutralise your cheap shots. Sorry if i dont abide to the narratives of the daily mail and spiteful narrow minded people. Anyway….needless to say i dont consider you a person or a mind that can tell me anything on the game nor do i have to mind my words like i do to passenal in order to avoid further hysterias due to misunderstandings. …… lets live and let live.
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And for the tenth time…noone called him a beckenbauer but you are passing djourou on as some misunderstood ultra world class defender, organiser and terror of strikers. Is that based on purely football criteria or the arsenal connection ?
Yesterday you said luiz will not improve at his age (27) , well guess how old djourou is….
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Cant we just agree that neither of them are top players and move on?
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we will move on when he you fin and gains watch the videos of the 7-1 and tell me which goals are luiz’s fault……hehe 😉
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i dont take kindly to cheap shots… especially when some cant even judge football properly………learn football first and then come take shots at me. muahaha…obey you bastards….. har har…i can safely say i have moved on now…good luck to all! happy holidays see you in aug-sept!
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“gay-boy djourou”
That sounds like something a Chelsea fan with the mental age of 12 would say. Wtf happened to you hunter? You are backing yourself more and more into a corner these days.
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@ merlot July 9, 2014 at 11:16 pm
“Game’s gone off the boil since that heart-stopping moment when it was held up to enable some geezer to put his boot back on. It’s been struggling ever since to recreate that level of excitement.”
Love the dry humour, merlot!
@ foreverheady
Fair point about an experienced keeper as backup, but I think AW feels that he only gets the best out of Chesney when he has to fight for his place, hence going after someone to compete with him for it.
@ hunter13
I suggest you use your time away from the blog to think about your behaviour. You have gone way beyond banter or cut and thrust.
Good result last night RvP crying (I hope) and Argentina knackered after 120 minutes plus penalties. And one day less rest. So come on Germany – win that World Cup now! Ideally with all three of our Arsenal boys in the side, of course.
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look sensational if you dont understand the context in which it was said why dont you shut the hell up ….what corner? you dont even understand what i say and you pick and chose to have a go at me ….
yes gay boy djourou..afraid of his own shadow, soft …..how else do you want to call it. ? .its a football slang/dressing room macho crap if you wish..an (admitedly) derogatory term for players who are lightweight in heart and balls…. your pseudomoral crap does not touch me…i know what i say and in what context.
im getting fed up with this……you are deluded if you think you can put me in a position where i have to apologise for football expressions and or preferences in players…….
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my behaviour fungunner? lol…yes i guess thats because i come here and have cheap shots when you or anyone else declare your opinion on players and i always urge you to stop talking about subjects i dont like or find boring……
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Yes Hunter, you are not really annoying anyone with your attitude. Its all the others who are marching out of step.? OR ?????????
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dont take this personal fungunnner it goes to everyone who wants to have a go at me……who do you think you are to tell me to watch my behaviour when im always in lighthearted mode making jokes about everything and including everyone in discussions ?..why dont you take a look at yourselves who react as if someone has offended your mother and father or stolen food from your table. when provoked by know nothing arrogant fools on football matters i respond with facts and with exact and defined examples NOT opinions and farts………….think about my behaviour?..lol …why dont you list down the ‘problems’ you have with my behaviour and we shall see if its me or you being sensitive and hypocritical.
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annoying who and for what george? is it my fault that people get annoyed of suarez? thats their problem not mine…….
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Well at least he hasn’t bitten anyone
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ridiculous!!! ……
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Anyone have any views on brightly coloured football boots as a “homosexual abomination’ ?
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@ anicoll5 July 10, 2014 at 11:23 am
Well at least he hasn’t bitten anyone
ha-ha (banned laughing face)
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And brightly coloured football boots are fabulous!
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Sorry, I thought that as a member of the Positively Arsenal family, I could genuinely ask what the hell happened to you. While I have not posted much recently, I have been reading the blog and going through the discussions regularly. I have not read all your comments. Kudos to anyone who does. You just seem to be on the wrong side of mad these days.
I wont sit on an high horse and say that you should behave this way or that way. I commented because I didnt expect such a comment about Djourou from you. If you want to say he is not as steely as David Luiz, you could have called him soft. Why call him a gay-boy? I believe that you were totally non-homophobic, but that doesnt mean that it doesnt offend. I just dont think it is nice to do that to an Arsenal player or any player or person for that matter.
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New post is up
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“Sorry, I thought that as a member of the Positively Arsenal family, I could genuinely ask what the hell happened to you”
im fine mate …. what happened to you?
oh so you havent read my comments but just go with popular opinion and the pick and chose routine….thanks for your fairness !
on djourou: again if you dont get the term and context simply dont comment……..since when do i have to excuse my words so as to please yours and others insecurities paranoias taboos and complexes ? …..
do you see me taking anyone to task for the descriptions on players like suarez that have nothing to do with his football ability ??????
but look at you all going ballistic for basically calling djourou …SOFT…in comparison to say lauiz and or hummels
find someone else to lecture ….
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george is this fair you reckon?
any random man or female having a go at someone when they havent understood or bothered to read properly or missing the context?
…………………………..
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