Arsenal: Why shouldn’t Aaron Ramsey make near what Mesut Ozil does?

Arsenal have taken care of a lot of their contract standoffs, but some still remain – namely Aaron Ramsey. But hasn’t he earned a massive raise?

Arsenal had a pickle in January, with both Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez out of contract in six months, not to mention Jack Wilshere. But when they sold Alexis and extended Ozil, it felt like they were out of the woods, as there was a sort of understanding that Wilshere would sign in time.

That left people looking forward to next summer, when Aaron Ramsey will be out of contract. Ramsey has divided opinion in his time with the club, but episodes of heroism, plus sticking with the club through thick and thin and seemingly always living up to his expectations, leads to a sure majority hoping he will stay.

However, the Times is reporting that Ramsey hopes to run his contract down in order to secure a Mesut Ozil-like pay raise. There is no hiding from the fact that Ramsey doesn’t boast the same star power as Ozil, but he does have several things going for him.

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For starters, he has been at the club longer, which goes a long way with Arsenal. Then there is the fact that he is younger and arguably in the midst of his prime.

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All compelling reasons. But I’d like to pull out the numbers to make the case as to why Ramsey deserves a contract in the vicinity of what Ozil is making, which reportedly weighs in around £350,000.

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Take Ozil’s history at Arsenal. He has played 9,561 Premier League minutes with the club and in that time, he has scored or assisted 62 times. That puts him contributing every 154 minutes. That’s a solid clip for someone who is often harangued for being inconsistent.

Going back to the last 9,000 minutes Aaron Ramsey has played with the club, he has scored or assisted 56 times, putting him just behind Ozil at a contribution every 160 minutes. Which, again, for someone that is blasted for not being good enough, is absolutely good enough.

The big difference between the two is health. Ozil plays two to three thousand minutes every season, barring his second, when he suffered a serious injury.

Ramsey seems to have a semi-serious injury or five every year. That has to take a toll on his argument at the negotiating table, and it’s that reason why I don’t think he should make the £350,000 that Ozil does.

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That said, anything in the range of £250-300,000? Absolutely. He has proven himself worth it. When he is healthy, he is a difference maker. He’s known for his heroics. There is no hiding from it. Ramsey deserves the money.