Arsenal: Joe Willock budding, but Aaron Ramsey still ages away

Joe Willock is settling into the Arsenal scenery so well for a youngster, but dropping the Aaron Ramsey bomb this early is… dicey.

It’s always only a matter of time before young phenoms are compared to legends. That’s how it always works, and it’s not just at Arsenal. So for Joe Willock, you knew it was coming.

The Aaron Ramsey bomb has been dropped. Just a few months after Aaron Ramsey’s unceremonious free departure from the club, the comparison can be made—Joe Willock can be the next Ramsey.

I would never compare someone to Ramsey. Ever. There’s a big difference between comparing to Ramsey and comparing to Laurent Koscielny, or even Santi Cazorla. When we say Dani Ceballos is like another Santi Cazorla, it’s because we see him doing the things Cazorla did on the pitch. While no one has really been compared to Koscielny yet, you could do it.

The big thing that makes Ramsey exceptionally hard to compare too is that intangible that he had, that delectable intangible—heroics.

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Ramsey was a living, breathing hero. He never shied from the limelight and when something was desperately needed, when the Gunners were on their last leg, Ramsey always seemed to be the guy to step into the spotlight and accomplish whatever task was needed.

Maybe Willock can score goals like Ramsey did. Maybe he can innovate, and drive the ball, and never tire; but saying that Willock can replace Ramsey is saying that Willock can find that same heroic gene that Ramsey had.

It’s not impossible. Not by any means. But Ramsey was something else. He was capable of sheer magic. That’s a bit unfair to throw on a young midfielder, especially one that hasn’t even settled into the first team yet.

Willock has a long way to go before we start saying he’s the next Aaron Ramsey. I’d actually prefer we say he can accomplish what Jack Wilshere might have, because while Wilshere was truly special, he never had the time to unleash the heroism like Ramsey did.

But again, comparisons are a tricky bugger across the board. No player is ever going to be identical to any other. Which is part of why it was so bizarre seeing Ceballos spinning through Burnley like Cazorla did to Manchester City years ago.

There’s a lot to be excited about with Willock, but Ramsey? I don’t often say this but… Too soon.