I was never quite convinced of Aaron Ramsey’s talent if I was to be honest. Even when he was scoring goals for fun last season I put it down to form rather than real talent and when I saw his form dip at the beginning of the season, I was not surprised.
Recently though, I have began to understand why Wenger puts so much faith in Ramsey. Watching Arsenal playing without Ramsey against Monaco, I realized how unbalanced the team really is as the players on the pitch all had a similar style of play yet they lacked a fulcrum to steady the ship.
Coquelin does a fantastic job of shielding the back four but the players around him keep drifting around the pitch without a single player really taking charge and spraying passes. Cazorla does that but tends to switch places with Ozil and Sanchez in a fluid formation.
Ramsey however, after coming on as a substitute in place of Coquelin, immediately brought solidity to the team that was lacking, probing and spraying passes around while joining in attack and as usual picking the right moment to make runs in to the box that only he and Paul Scholes can do with such ease. It was no wonder that he was the one to grab the second goal of the night that gave Arsenal hope while falling just short of the finish line.
I still believe Aaron Ramsey needs to be more accurate with his passing and I am quite sure he will never be a player who can spot a quick run and thread an eye of the needle pass in a split second. He is certainly no Ozil, Cazorla or Rosicky. What he brings to the table however is his energy, runs into the box that contribute to a lot of goals and now he can add to his repertoire, ability to control a game from midfield. Aaron Ramsey has certainly come of age.
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