Coquelin injury paves way for Ramsey opportunity - and he must take it

COMMENT

Aaron Ramsey’s patient approach will finally see him rewarded with a run in the Arsenal side this month after it was revealed that Francis Coquelin has been ruled out for up to four weeks.

There have been many struggles in Ramsey’s young career since he joined the Gunners in 2008, none more so than the horrific leg break at Stoke which he suffered in 2010. Arsene Wenger said it took Ramsey three years for his box-to-box man to ‘fully recover’ from the shocking injury, but his latest struggle has been having to contend with a spot on the substitutes' bench this season following the arrival of Granit Xhaka from Borussia Monchengladbach.

Wenger’s first-choice central midfield partnership appears to be Xhaka and Coquelin, although the Frenchman’s untimely injury has given Ramsey the perfect opportunity to stake his claim for a place in the starting line-up.

The League Cup defeat to Southampton last month saw Ramsey start in the no.10 role where he was one of the more experienced players on show alongside the likes of Jeff Reine-Adelaide and Rob Holding. Despite being handed a golden opportunity in a match he’d usually expect to thrive in, Ramsey only created one chance in 90 minutes and failed to stamp his mark on the game.

When the Welshman starts in the Gunners' midfield against Preston on Saturday, he will look to prove the naysayers wrong. The partnership of Xhaka and Ramsey has produced brief moments of success so far, including the Champions League match in Basel and recent league victory over Bournemouth, and in the 683 minutes that Ramsey has spent on the pitch for Arsenal this season they have scored 21 goals - one every 32 minutes. Critics appear to focus on his tendency to shy away from a difficult pass and that has become more regular over the past few weeks, signalling a lack of confidence in the 26-year-old’s game.

Ramsey scored 15 goals before Christmas three years ago when partnered with Mikel Arteta in midfield. The freedom and protection given to him by the Spaniard certainly helped him flourish in midfield and, if he wasn’t ruled out for three months with a thigh strain at the turn of the year, who knows how many more goals he could have added to his name. It is indeed the injuries which have taken the biggest toll on Ramsey’s development as he has suffered seven similar muscular injuries in the past three seasons.

With those injuries seemingly a thing of the past, Ramsey needs to start leaving his mark on a game by doing what he’s good at. He’s a box-to-box player who can score goals, create chances and work tirelessly to get out of tight pockets in the midfield. Being named in the UEFA Euro 2016 Team of the Tournament shouldn't be understated either and it’s testament to the player himself for shining on one of the biggest stages there is, as well as an example of what he can bring to a team when utilised properly.

Manchester City and Juventus both made tentative enquiries over Ramsey’s availability in the summer following his Euro 2016 excursions. There will be no shortage of suitors for the player if he decides to call time on his Arsenal career at the end of the season, and lack of playing time is likely to have a huge say in that.

Since he joined Arsenal it has become apparent that Ramsey is a versatile player who believes he has come to the end of his positional development. The experiment on the flank didn’t work but helped him progress into a more decisive player in midfield and against Preston he will be given a chance to show what he can do in his favoured central position.

It’s up to Ramsey to decide how much of an influence he’ll provide.