Why re-signing Ramsey would be a disaster for Arsenal in January
Stefan Bienkowski
- 9 Nov 2021 22:34 GMT
- 5 min read
With the January transfer window just around the corner, Arsenal will undoubtedly begin putting together plans to improve Mikel Arteta’s squad.
Now that the London club have got their form back on track, they’ll need new recruits to ensure injuries or suspensions don’t ruin another league campaign.
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However, one rumour that is growing arms and legs is the suggestion that the Premier League side may be tempted to welcome Aaron Ramsey back with open arms if Juventus do indeed terminate his contract.
Yet, while Ramsey may fill a few holes in Arteta’s side on paper, he’s far from the player he once was at Arsenal.
A diminished playmaker
One of Ramsey’s most notable talents at Arsenal was his ability to create plays but also finish them with late runs into the box.
However, over the course of his time in Italy, that aspect of the midfielder’s game has undoubtedly diminished.
For example, in his last season at Arsenal, Ramsey averaged 0.22 goals and 0.26 assists per game. Or 0.48 goals and assists per game in total. In his first season at Juve that dropped to 0.3, then rose slightly to 0.33 last season but now sits at zero, with no goals or assists in five appearances this season.
Indeed, the most damning stat of all is that after 70 games for the Italian giants, Ramsey has only managed six goals and six assists.
Not so box-to-box either
Another part of Ramsey’s game that has gotten worse during his troubled time in Italy is his ability to make defensive challenges and simply dribble with the ball up and down the pitch.
Like a true box-to-box midfielder, Ramsey was a useful asset in both boxes and enjoyed strong defensive challenges and dribbling stats for Arsenal. But that hasn't been the case at Juve.
For example, after averaging six defensive challenges per game at Arsenal in 18/19, that average fell from 5.9 in his first season at Juventus, down to 5.3 and now just 4.6 defensive challenges per game for this season.
Similarly, after averaging 3.2 dribbles per game for Arsenal, Ramsey has seen that particular metric drop to 2.8, then 1.89 last season and now just 1.02 this season.
In more than one way, Ramsey is undoubtedly a shadow of his former self and would be a notable risk for Arsenal. Even if the London club were able to get him on a free transfer or for a small fee.
