With eight goals and one assist in the last ten games, Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsay is in superb form for the Gunners at the moment, and Liverpool legend Mark Lawrenson believes that the Wales international is finally beginning to fulfill his undoubted potential.
Speaking to the BBC today, Lawro singled out Ramsay for individual praise. He enthused:
"Aaron Ramsey is...almost unstoppable.
"He’s starting to look like the player with so much promise who was signed from Cardiff.
"He has always had the ability and is really starting to influence the way Arsenal can play. There is no doubt that he can be a top player and has sneaked in under the Wilshere radar a bit".
With over 150 appearances for Arsenal to date, Ramsay seems to have been around forever, but it's amazing to think that he's still only 22 years old. Prior to signing for Arsenal, Liverpool put in a £5m bid for Ramsay, which Cardiff City rejected. At the time, The Telegraph reported:
"Liverpool and Arsenal have both seen offers for 17-year old midfielder Aaron Ramsey rejected by Cardiff City. Both offers, said to be close to £5m, were deemed unsuitable as the deals were based on provisions dependant on the teenager's development"
Ramsey ultimately signed for Arsenal in a £4.8m deal, which suggests he specifically rejected a move to Anfield. In this case, the BBC reported at the time:
"Arsenal flew him [Ramsey] to Switzerland for face-to-face talks with boss Arsene Wenger at Euro 2008"
Would Liverpool do that for a young player? Would Liverpool even do this for Henrikh Mkhitaryan or Willian? Even now, the Reds rarely seem to push the boat out for players (Christian Eriksen, anyone?).
Clearly, being made to feel wanted clearly impressed Ramsey, who explained at the time:
"He [Wenger] was a big factor in my decision to join Arsenal. Arsene talked to me for a long time about the club and the plans for the future, which really excites me. Arsenal is a club which always gives young players an opportunity at the highest level".
Although a fairly consistent performer, it has taken five years for Ramsey to really start making his mark, and in the first two months of this season, he's already scored 8 goals, which is the same number of goals Jordan Henderson scored in his two full seasons at Anfield. That's no slight on Henderson, though, who - like Ramsey - is on an upward curve right now.
Arsene Wenger has shown remarkable patience with Ramsey, but what would've happened if he's signed for LFC in 2008? Would Ramsey have received the same level of patience? I doubt it. Like so many other young players over the years, he probably would've fallen by the wayside, and right now, he'd either be toiling in obscurity, or out on loan for nth time.
I'd be surprised if Ramsey continues his goalscoring streak throughout the season, but the Mesut Ozil now in the squad, he's bound to get many more chances than usual to score goals.
Jaimie Kanwar
NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)
Speaking to the BBC today, Lawro singled out Ramsay for individual praise. He enthused:
"Aaron Ramsey is...almost unstoppable.
"He’s starting to look like the player with so much promise who was signed from Cardiff.
"He has always had the ability and is really starting to influence the way Arsenal can play. There is no doubt that he can be a top player and has sneaked in under the Wilshere radar a bit".
With over 150 appearances for Arsenal to date, Ramsay seems to have been around forever, but it's amazing to think that he's still only 22 years old. Prior to signing for Arsenal, Liverpool put in a £5m bid for Ramsay, which Cardiff City rejected. At the time, The Telegraph reported:
"Liverpool and Arsenal have both seen offers for 17-year old midfielder Aaron Ramsey rejected by Cardiff City. Both offers, said to be close to £5m, were deemed unsuitable as the deals were based on provisions dependant on the teenager's development"
Ramsey ultimately signed for Arsenal in a £4.8m deal, which suggests he specifically rejected a move to Anfield. In this case, the BBC reported at the time:
"Arsenal flew him [Ramsey] to Switzerland for face-to-face talks with boss Arsene Wenger at Euro 2008"
Would Liverpool do that for a young player? Would Liverpool even do this for Henrikh Mkhitaryan or Willian? Even now, the Reds rarely seem to push the boat out for players (Christian Eriksen, anyone?).
Clearly, being made to feel wanted clearly impressed Ramsey, who explained at the time:
"He [Wenger] was a big factor in my decision to join Arsenal. Arsene talked to me for a long time about the club and the plans for the future, which really excites me. Arsenal is a club which always gives young players an opportunity at the highest level".
Although a fairly consistent performer, it has taken five years for Ramsey to really start making his mark, and in the first two months of this season, he's already scored 8 goals, which is the same number of goals Jordan Henderson scored in his two full seasons at Anfield. That's no slight on Henderson, though, who - like Ramsey - is on an upward curve right now.
Arsene Wenger has shown remarkable patience with Ramsey, but what would've happened if he's signed for LFC in 2008? Would Ramsey have received the same level of patience? I doubt it. Like so many other young players over the years, he probably would've fallen by the wayside, and right now, he'd either be toiling in obscurity, or out on loan for nth time.
I'd be surprised if Ramsey continues his goalscoring streak throughout the season, but the Mesut Ozil now in the squad, he's bound to get many more chances than usual to score goals.
Jaimie Kanwar
NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)
Ramsey has always had the potential to be a special player & before the injury was already showing this in the Arsenal first team. Henderson is a squad player for a top 6 club at best. A club like Liverpool can not afford to have Henderson start week in week out as he simply is not good enough.
ReplyDeleteI really don't think we want players who need to be convinced to come here. Rodgers seems to use it as a deliberate strategy. If you're not hungry for Liverpool then we don't bother.
ReplyDeleteThats just stupid. You dont think Wenger had to convince Ozil to join this summer or in the past for example Ramsey to pick Arsenal over United? Its a huge part of the managers duties in the transfer market especially with all the new money clubs.
ReplyDelete... Although listening to Rodgers for more than 5 minutes will most likely put a player off joining so maybe he has it right!
Absolutely spot on with henderson at this point in his career he is not a starter for a top team
ReplyDeleteits called operating in the 21st century......its that little bit extra in regards wining and dining and attention to detail that closes the deal....liverpools negotiation team couldn't close a car door ....rogers apparently doesn't even meet them face to face before signing which in my books is bizarre...Liverpool are no longer the premier team in england let alone the world ...and we cant compete financially with the big boys so its imperative that the details we can do right are done and not left to chance but dont bank on it...thats why we spent 8m on alberto and spurs gut erikson for 11m do the math
ReplyDeletehenderson is twice the player aspas alberto allen and borini is..and is currently playing better than gerrad and lucas so try start at the bottom and give me a call when you get to hendo ....that meands ditching most of liverpools squad who for the most part are average
ReplyDeleteWell, I like it. Suarez aside, every player we have in our squad right now absolutely wants to be there and would give everything they have for the club. That's what I enjoy seeing in a football team.
ReplyDeleteThe way Bale, Ramsey & Allen developing, if Williams & Ladely can keep their top form for another 3/4 years & some other young player supports, we might see Wales becoming the best National team from British Isles.
ReplyDeleteArsene Wenger can't be wrong in the transfer market. As long Arsene Wenger is willing to pay for a player, he must be someone unique. I'm totally convinced that given LFC's owners willingness to invest money plus Arsene Wenger's astuteness in player search and development, we would long have a new stadium plus at least one EPL championship to our name. Too bad it's just not meant to be.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it seems like the 2nd-tier teams in EPL is getting stronger this season. We have a good chance of making up the gap between the top teams and ourselves. But we are equally in danger of being squeezed out of where we are by these 2nd-tier teams, with ourselves being one actually.
It's hard to say what would happen with Ramsey if he'd have came to us. We've never really gotten one of these 'hot property' youngsters who everyone seems to be after. We've got very young ones like Sterling or Ibe, and we've gotten bigger, slightly more proven names like Henderson, but we've missed out on these premium rate but unproven players (Bale, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott).
ReplyDeleteI suppose Will Hughes falls into this category, so if we get him, we'll see how that turns out.
the very least i expect from a player on thousands of pounds a week is effort ...effort is a given and shouldn't be applauded
ReplyDeletewe would have played him out of position in a cup game where we got beat then loaned him to stockport only for him to give up football to become a postman
ReplyDelete"Effort" is not the same as "giving everything they have for the club". There are plenty of players who don't slog their guts out for their team and who'd happily trade up when a better offer comes along. I like having players who are truly dedicated to the cause and not just showing "effort" in order to earn a pay check. Don't you think you can tell the difference?
ReplyDeletewell if you watch the game today one of our midfield talents is playing .. opposite ramsey the problem is though we have sold him ...even though we have no midfielder s....there is a menza level of intellect operating at anfield these days
ReplyDeletethey give everything for themselves, if you think the players at anfield are any different from players at utd or everton your kidding your self
ReplyDeleteindeed, bad management
ReplyDeletewe've seen plenty of players at anfield over the years who didn't give everything and it was painfully obvious to see. you're kidding you self if you don't think there are players like that out there.
ReplyDeletefor the most part the players at most top clubs operate on the same level of commitment...unless you privy to the mental state of our current players you cant judge how commited they are so its all irrelevant ..if im honest non of our players have looked that commited in the second half of most games we have played this season
ReplyDeleteyou may have misunderstood my point...effort is the very least i expect whether you get it or not is another question
ReplyDeleteFernando Torres?
ReplyDeleteI'm personally happy with the level of commitment from our players. They lose some confidence but, to quote the manager, I can't fault their effort. Just how I see it so, despite us not always playing well, I get something out of seeing them work hard. That's just me.
effort is also about how you conduct yourself of pitch...not falling out of nightclubs pissed at 4am ...being polite to fans...doing your bit for local charities and looking after yourself
ReplyDeleteAgreed. A player who appreciates being at the club should know their responsibility.
ReplyDeletethats one of the reasons i have a soft spot for hendo...maybe he cant pass like hoddle ...but he always gives 100% ..always turns up fit...and you dont see him falling out of clubs or getting into petty spats with people
ReplyDeleteSuso vs Barca
ReplyDeleteif hes playing well i dont want to know
ReplyDeletesuso vs barca
ReplyDeleteThat's all I'm saying. I like having players like that in the team so I don't get all teary when we don't sign the big name players who don't really seem like they're much interested in coming here. If they don't want to come in the first place I don't believe we can convince them to come here and give that 100% effort. Talent only gets you so far, the rest has to be attitude and determination. Maybe those name players would do the job, I obviously don't know for sure.
ReplyDelete@jk last year they wanted ramsey out
ReplyDeleteanyway suso is just as good
but it is another reason we have to go for will hughes
It's great to see Ramsey coming good, I think that injury will make him a even better player now because to come back from that takes a lot of courage and focus. I think we will see the best of Henderson when he finds a place in the middle of the pitch.
ReplyDeleteScored winner again tonight - WALES RULE O K - well maybe not
ReplyDeleteCould not have put it better myself mate.
ReplyDeleteHaha that seems like a Jason Carr comment but I agree with everything you have said on this post, you're spot on.
ReplyDeleteWow! Even better than Henderson! Is that possible? Is even Iniesta better than Henderson? Was Gerrard at his greatest better? Hard to believe because Hendo is so incredibly talented and such a lethal scoring machine. His control makes Pirlo look a total duffer.
ReplyDeleteThey showed neither interest nor ambition against Southampton and were lucky to lose by only one goal. Is that what you like? Suarez is the only class in the side and hopefully he'll be sensible enough to see he's wasting his time at Anfield, surrounded as he is by total dross.
ReplyDeleteYou could take a chap from a park team and he'd give his all too. To play in the Premier league you should also have a bit of skill. That's where hopeless Hendo falls down.
ReplyDeleteThat loan was something that just had to be done, especially when we had the opportunity to spend £8m to get another 20 y/o onto our bench in Suso's place right...
ReplyDeleteThey all need to be convinced. All these players aren't signing for LFC because they're lifelong fans of the club you know.
ReplyDeleteHenderson is very much our version of Ramires imo.
ReplyDeleteAnd Ramires is arguably the most consistently important midfielder for Chelsea, even with all the talk of the quality playmakers ahead of him.
I'm glad to see Ramsey performing on the pitch, if only to prove myself right on my early projections of his quality!
ReplyDeleteHenderson did have standout quality when I saw him for Sunderland also though, not just his ability to run a lot. I'm sure that there's a lot more to come from him, once the team improves around him and he starts actually consistently playing in his best position through the middle, just as with Ramsey this year.
when suso comes back from his loan deal we can send alberto out on loan...thats some plan
ReplyDeletefunny hes that hopeless he captains that he captains under 21 has played a shitfull of games in the prem for liverpool and sunderland and rogers cant drop him because he knows hes the only midfielder we have who can run 30 yards at pace without coughing blood
ReplyDeleteI don't really agree. We were poor but I could see the effort and the commitment from the players. I do like that because it somewhat softens the blow of losing. I don't expect you share that view but that's fine, we're all entitled to make our own observations.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't seem to be true. Rodgers didn't even meet Coutinho before we signed him. Who did the convincing then?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I don't mean that we don't have to do anything and players magically appear at LFC, but I think that for the most part showing our interest, making and offer and simply saying to the player "we think you're a good player and we'd like you to play for Liverpool football club" could be enough. I don't recall us doing anything special for any of the players we've signed.
ReplyDeleteReally should have put a bid in for Eriksen, usual LFC policy budget buys, its getting boring now, other teams are forging ahead, we had a good start but started to faulter now.
ReplyDeleteWho else was after Coutinho at the time? I don't think we had much competition, certainly not the level of/intensity of say when we are after Ramsey, Bale, Ronaldo, etc.
ReplyDelete'They all need to be convinced'
ReplyDeleteEspecially when there is a lot of competition for the player, especially teams who are as good as us, if not better.
'every player we have in our squad right now absolutely wants to be there and would give everything they have for the club'
ReplyDeleteI'd take that with a pinch of salt. There maybe a few but that many, that is just rose-tinted in modern-day football.
The same under 21s that was managed by the hapless Stuart Pearce with his caveman tactics. So I don't think its that much of a compliment, the under 21 captain bit.
ReplyDeleteHe said "they all need to be convinced", not just the ones that we're competing with other teams to get.
ReplyDeleteAnd i'd agree with that, they all need to convinced...to varying degrees. With Coutinho, (from the outside looking in) he didn't need as much convincing as there was hardly any competition for him.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say they'd not trade Liverpool for anything or dedicate their lives to the club, but I think the vast majority of the squad are quite committed at the moment. OK, I don't really know what's going on in their head and I absolutely understand this is a job for them, but perhaps it's all relative. You could say the same for any player at any club, so what I'd say instead is that, at least compared to the average club, we seem to have a group of players that want to be here and work hard for the club. Go through the starting 11 ... I think that's the case for the majority of the players, Suarez the obvious exclusion. Didn't Agger turn down Barca? Mignolet is unlikely to be thinking about playing anywhere else. Sakho just came from his boyhood club and actually cried when he left them, that shows that he means to do well here. Gerrard is here for life and Lucas has never even hinted at wanting to play anywhere else. Johnson looks like he's here until he gets moved on, Sturridge had his career saved by Liverpool and Coutinho came from Inter, a pretty big team to leave behind. I think the statement stands up, maybe with the qualification of "compared to how it is at any football team". Plus I feel like I can see it on the pitch. Just my view.
ReplyDeleteWell as per the article I don't see us doing much active convincing. See my comment above. We make an offer and tell the player we want them. Seems like that's usually enough. The debate comes in terms of how much you feel needs to happen beyond that and I'm still leaning towards the side of not falling over ourselves to try and beg players to come here. The ones we sign usually seem fairly pleased to be here.
ReplyDeleteAgger is one of a few, yes. Gerrard is a red through and through, that is obvious. But Mignolet? There was hardly any other club in for him. Sakho left PSG for first team football, i.e., like I said, development. He has hunger but not because of us in particular, but because of first team football. I don't recall any club being in for Lucas, who is nothing special, whilst he has been here, especially higher up the food chain. Johnson kind of the same too. This is as good as he is going to get, in terms of quality of club. That goes for most of the players here. So just because they aren't looking to leave, doesn't mean they necessarily have some special commitment to LFC. I just see it as them accepting this is as good as they are going to get, so they are going to give something to the cause but not because of some romantic/purist feeling for the club.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of seeing it 'on the pitch', I think that is very hard to tell, in terms of whether they would be the same elsewhere. I think its very hard to gauge from the outside looking in, your view. I just think they are as committed as most other clubs at any other club. Most of that commitment isn't to do with some sort of LFC special feeling, regardless of their PR lines of history, the Kop, etc but because of money, ambition and playing games.
The convincing would be done by whoever was negotiating the contract.
ReplyDeleteJust as @OriginalChan says, it all depends on the individual circumstances as to the level of persuasion needed, but player with any sort of option would need to be sold on the idea of joining a new club, regardless of who it is
If the player is talented and their is competition for him, I think we should be doing quite a bit of convincing. Its the par for the course these days when going for a player that is interesting a lot of teams.
ReplyDelete'The ones we sign usually seem fairly pleased to be here.'
For most of them it is because we are as good as they are going to get at that time. For most of them, we were hardly in competition with many clubs higher up the food chain. E.g. Coutinho, Southampton v Liverpool. Easy choice.
Maybe you've got me wrong, I don't believe at all that they "love" the club or have some special feeling, I just think it's obvious enough that they'll work hard and not just phone it in or give a half-assed performance. Rodgers wouldn't have that anyway, they'd be off the team in a second. I don't think any of these guys are romantically attached, but I do think, as you say, that they will give something to the cause. It's just that this is not always the case, and too often we see players who simply don't want to play for their team. There are plenty of examples. We don't have any of those and I like that. Suarez is an odd case, but it seems like he's in for the season now and ready to let loose.
ReplyDeleteYeah, look I probably agree. This is mostly devils advocate type comments from me at the moment, although I do think we've got a good team of players who are happy to be here and I like seeing that.
ReplyDeleteI guess I got some of it blurred, in terms of that line between being committed in general v being specially committed to us. But I don't see any special about our players in that regard, when compared to any other club.
ReplyDeleteYes, big name players can have a big ego that can be temperamental and show it on the pitch but their talent can be worth the hassle. Once you get the balance right with them, I'd much rather have them in my side than a so-called constantly committed player who rarely give a 8 or 9/10 decisive performance. I'd swap the likes of Hendo for a big-name player in a flash. Silva can have spells of going missing but he is talented and I'd take him in a flash. Why? Because when he is on form, he is on a level of decisiveness and match-winning ability that most so-called constantly committed players can only dream of.
You're not a Liverpool fan, you don't watch the team's games, you are talking out of your arse. You are a twat. Find something else to do with your time.
ReplyDeleteCaptain of the England Under 21 team? Considering the full England team is a national disgrace that is humiliated at every tournament it goes to, being captain of the Under 21 side doesn't rate too highly on my scale of values. As I said before, for sure you could find a chap from a Sunday League team who could run 30 yards pretty fast. But he'd still be out of place in the Premier. When you've seen men like Milne, Stevenson, Hughes, Case, Molby, Kennedy, Whelan, Souness, McDermott etc etc operating in midfield, you don't get very excited about Henderson.
ReplyDeleteFor the life of me could see no effort or commitment. All i could see was 'let's get off the pitch, get into the shower and head for a party in our huge cars.' I thought it was utterly dreaful. And that was my observation.
ReplyDelete