Arsenal: Aaron Ramsey commitment admirable and problematic

Aaron Ramsey has stated that he will commit to Arsenal for the whole season. His application is admirable, but it could be problematic also.

Two weeks ago, it was announced that Arsenal were to rescind their contract offer to Aaron Ramsey and allow him to leave the club this season, either via a sale in January or on a free transfer at the end of the year.

Catch the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast right here

It was no easy decision. Ramsey was named Player of the Season last term, has been a key part of the team in recent seasons, and is the longest-serving player at the club having signed over a decade ago. But the financial restrictions were such that a decision had to be made. The Gunners couldn’t afford Ramsey.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

That leaves Ramsey is a rather peculiar situation. He is still at a club that he knows he will not be at in a matter of months, a club that he loves dearly, a club that he is highly-regarded at, a club that he has been successful at, and a club that will soon no longer be his.

When asked about how he will respond to such a peculiar situation, Ramsey gave an admirable and honest answer:

"“I am contracted to Arsenal and I am going to do my best now this season to try and achieve something special. Everything has been going great with the club. We thought we were in a position where we had agreed a deal but that’s no longer the case. So I just have to carry on playing my football and do my best for Arsenal this season, and I’ll leave the rest with the club now.”"

Ramsey’s commitment to the club is commendable. It is a measure of his character, that he, unlike Alexis Sanchez last season, is willing to apply himself fully to a team that does not want him enough to pay him the wages that he rightly believes he deserves. But it is also a little problematic.

Now that Arsenal have decided that they do not want to keep Ramsey beyond this season, their best course of action would be to engineer a sale in January in an attempt to recoup as much value as possible for the midfielder to aid with finding a replacement and re-investing in other areas of the squad. But if Ramsey has decided that he will honour his contract and stay until the end of the season, it could be quite challenging to sell him.

Not only will potential suitors be put off from investing in a player who has little interest in leaving at that time, but even if an offer is accepted, there is no guarantee that Ramsey will sign a contract with the new club, choosing instead to survey his options in the summer when any buyer doesn’t have a transfer fee to pay and he holds all the negotiating power.

Ramsey’s commitment to Arsenal is admirable and should be praised. It is a credit to him as an individual and illustrates why he is such a popular figure at the club. But it may also cause a problem, not that that should be his concern. Ramsey is doing what is best for him. It is Arsenal that must dig themselves out of this mess.