1. For This Must Surely Be The Nexus Of Cause And Effect!
Let me now list the names who were lauded earlier in the season, who've come under scorn and fire the last two months: Olivier Giroud, Mesut zil, Santi Cazorla, Jack Wilshere and Mikel Arteta. Sound familiar? They should, it's practically the entire of Arsenal's frequent starting 11, sans the defence and Chesny. Back in the Autumn, Giroud was touted as a revelation, zil was hyped as a superstar signing, many said Wilshere was starting to come into his own and even Arteta (in spite of what I said earlier!) had his moments. He was immense in the 2-0 win over champions elect Liverpool... However none shone brighter than Aaron Ramsey. Up until his injury many people's player of the season, Ramsey was the beacon of all the positive energy and belief that surrounded the club at the time. His injury served not just as a blow to the fans belief but to the other players' performances also. All of a sudden, Giroud became tired, zil lazy, Cazorla static and Wilshire unfit. To what extent any of these claims is accurate, that's up to your interpretation however, what was immediately clear against Hull and against West Ham midweek was that these terms certainly didn't apply any more. Coincidence, that it occurs with Ramsey's re-entry into the team? I doubt it. Ramsey's presence on the pitch isn't just limited to his physical exploits, it's psychological too. His tireless running and stern refusal to drop off can only serve as a tonic to those around him, unwilling to appear bad in contrast. Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski both put on their best games in an Arsenal shirt in months, the last 2 games and suddenly, Olivier Giroud finds he has someone bombing up from midfield to aid him when holding up the ball. These aren't accidents. Ramsey's performance against Hull and the way it affected and inspired the rest of the team is a 90-Minute cross-section of Arsenal's season: the good we had before his injury, the bad we've had since and the downright ugly that came from it. For the faithful Gooner like me, one can only hope and pray that Aaron can remain fit and in fine form for the entirety of the next campaign but for Arsené and the rest of the backroom staff, they CAN NOT count on it. In the summer, Wenger needs to recognise the injection of pace, impetus, energy and belief that an Aaron Ramsey brings to this Arsenal team and find one, if not two or three others that will bring the same. Otherwise, you can write off any chance of another title challenge now as the same tired story book we've been reading since 2006. It's like all the other fans say in pubs, over terrible pints of Fosters with too much head: Arsenal always fall apart in the Spring. Count on it.
Betting on being a brilliant brother to Bodhi since 2008 (-1 Asian Handicap). Find me @LiamJJohnson on Twitter where you might find some wonderful pearls of wisdom in a stout cocktail of profanity, football discussion and general musings. Or you might not. Depends how red my eyes are.
