Arsene Wenger Hints at Key Role for Aaron Ramsey—Should He Gamble?

He concedes possession cheaply and will dive into the odd rash tackle. His red card against Bolton last season is just one example this.

This leaves three, and personally I’d even say two, because to me Denilson is too similar to Fabregas.

Don’t get me wrong, I think he is a wonderful talent, and he’d probably find a place in most teams in the Premier League, but he is too good to be a squad player at Arsenal. I believe that he won’t get enough games at the club and eventually leave to do great things elsewhere.

So we’re left with Song and Ramsey. The latter seems more likely, as Wenger has said he sees Song as a centre back who can come into midfield if needed, but not as a long-term option.

So now we have to look at Ramsey, with no Premier League experience and a handful of international caps to his name. He may be touted as the next Steven Gerrard, but even he wasn’t thrown in at the deep end.

I think Wenger needs to dip into the transfer kitty and ease the worries of every Arsenal fan. Gareth Barry would be ideal, he’s done it year in, year out, in the Premier League, and now he’s also started to show he can compete at international level.

He’s also a natural leader and with a bit of luck he may even displace William Gallas as captain.

Better still, his ability to hold together a midfield which will allow Fabregas to roam, influence and even dominate a game in a way that we know he can, makes this potential partnership mouth-watering to the Arsenal fan.

Add the fact that he has the ability to chip in with the odd goal, put in a decent set piece delivery and his versatility which would allow him to fill in at full back or on the wing down the left hand side, you’d have to wonder why Wenger hasn’t snapped him up already. Well, that’s the only problem, his price tag.

We know this, of course, as Liverpool have been chasing Gareth Barry for the whole summer, and the fee is hefty at around £18 million. Despite Wenger stating his admiration for the player, history shows that he won’t pay it. But maybe it’s time for Wenger not to be so stubborn?

The Arsenal manager claims that the benefits of the move to the Emirates Stadium has allowed him to spend more in the transfer market, yet he also claims that the mortgage on Arsenal’s new home means that the club has to watch what they spend.

The only people that can answer my next question would be the Arsenal accountants, but why is a manager that has recouped more on transfer fees than he has spent, scared to spend big money when necessary?

He’s done it with Nasri, but that was funded from the money that came from Alexander Hleb’s transfer to Barcelona. Who knows? Still, although £18 million for Barry is steep, most fees are in the current transfer market.

You have to accept that for Villa, their valuation is realistic. OPTA stats show that in the past two seasons, Gareth Barry has scored 17 goals, clocked up even more assists and created an average of two goal scoring chances per game.

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