So, it’s official, Aaron Ramsey will be joining Juventus on a free transfer at the end of the season. Finally, confirmation, following months of speculation. But what will the Welshman bring to the side?
Quite simply, the 28-year-old has been brought in to add a goal threat to the midfield. Someone to work between the lines and add a bit of spark in the final third.
Currently Juve have a mixture of creative players (Miralem Pjanic), holding players (Sami Khedira and Emre Can), tenacious players (Blaise Matuidi) and versatile players (Rodrigo Bentancur), but no one who you would say has a potent goalscoring streak. The Welshman is known for his eye for goal and late bursts into the area, as well as his box-to-box ability.
Surely the missing piece of the jigsaw? Well, not necessarily.
Though he possesses the ability to transform a game, he can also be frustratingly anonymous. It is a well-known fact he divides opinion amongst the Arsenal support – particularly due to the amount of time he spends on the sidelines. Some weeks he shows his quality, other weeks you wouldn’t think he was on the pitch and, for a substantial part of the season, he generally isn’t.
In 2013/14, he looked as if he had the world at his feet after 16 goals and nine assists in 34 appearances. He was linked with the likes of Barcelona and other European giants. Then the injuries crept back in… again. In 2016, he went on to have a phenomenal European Championship with Wales, his performances guiding them through to the semi-finals of the competition, but once again he did not really kick on from it.
The talent is clearly there, however, and Juventus could just be the place where it is harnessed. The Bianconeri have the solid core of a team and Ramsey will be able to slot into a position which naturally suits him. At Arsenal he is often deployed in a deeper role which doesn’t particularly match his style. At least at Juve he will be unshackled to a certain degree. He just needs to find that consistency and stay fit. If he can, he may just turn out to be a real coup.
Fitness is the key concern, though. In the 2017/18 season he missed 11 games through injury, in 2016/17 he missed 22, the season before he missed 11, and so on and so on. If these injury problems persist and he misses key fixtures for the Bianconeri, it could harm their chances of progression – trying to seal that elusive Champions League trophy.
It is a gamble on their part signing a player with his injury record. The fact that it was on a free swings in their favour, following the singing of Cristiano Ronaldo they probably do not have the capital to go out and spend €100 million on a goalscoring midfielder, but they are still taking a chance.
It will be interesting to see how his final six months at Arsenal pan out. If he stays fit for the duration, Juventus fans can begin to get excited. However, if he is struggling in and out with injuries, unfortunately, it may just be a case of brand new club, same old problems.
