Aaron Ramsey’s belting volley at Stoke City on Saturday rather slipped under the radar, what with everything that went, and tends to go, with an Arsenal defeat. The midfielder made sure that he was noticed at Galatasaray.
His long-range rocket, which was his second goal of the Champions League tie on Tuesday night and put Arsenal 3-0 up before the half-hour, was the best of his career, he said. And he has scored some beauties, most notably the volley at Norwich City last season.
Arsène Wenger admitted that when Ramsey twisted into position to try his luck on the half-volley from 35 yards, after a corner had been cleared towards him, he wondered whether it was the right decision. The manager was happy to be proved wrong.
It was a moment to draw the breath; the technique, the precision and the left-footed power fusing to devastating effect. Ramsey is the scourge of the Istanbul clubs. It was his sixth goal in six appearances against Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas, with four of them coming in four ties in Istanbul.
“I have seen the goal back and it is definitely the best I have scored,” Ramsey said, after the 4-1 win. “Before that, it was probably the volley at Norwich. As soon as I hit it, I thought it had a chance and thankfully it went into the top corner. I like playing in Istanbul. I would like to play these teams every week, if I could.”
It was Ramsey’s overall performance that fired the hope that he had recovered his best levels and the challenge now has to be to find some consistency. As recently as last Wednesday, he had been disappointing against Southampton in the Premier League, although he still found a way to set up the late winner for Alexis Sánchez.
His season so far has been marked by injuries and framed by the struggle to recapture the explosive form that he showed last time out. Sometimes, it is as though he has been trying too hard, especially to get on the scoresheet, and Wenger has needed to remind him to concentrate on the basics of being a midfielder.
But against Galatasaray, albeit against a poor Galatasaray, there were those driving runs at the penalty area; vision to his passing and energetic pressing. And, of course, it came off for him in front of goal. The confidence was clear not only in the execution of the seemingly impossible but in the attempt itself. The volley at Stoke was Ramsey’s first goal in 16 matches for Arsenal. After Galatasaray, he has six for the season.
The 23-year-old talked in positive terms about his fitness, and there was irony in that he had been forced off at half-time because of tightness in his hamstring. He said he “should be all right” for the visit of Newcastle United on Saturday but it offered a reminder that he is not yet out of the woods.
Ramsey damaged his hamstring against Tottenham Hotspur on 27 September to miss three weeks of action and he said that he only began to feel how he should feel after the November international break. He now has his sights fixed on piecing together a run of personal performances and collective results.
- Appearances
- 5
- Goals
- 2
- Shots
- 6
- Shots on target
- 67%
- Offsides
- 0
“It’s important to get a run in the league,” Ramsey said. “We have a busy couple of weeks coming up and hopefully we can take full advantage and take maximum points throughout December. It was important to bounce back from the defeat at Stoke and we did that.
“I felt good in the Manchester United game [on 22 November] and I am getting sharper in every game. I am feeling good and hopefully I can play my part as the team go on a run. The hamstring is OK. It’s a bit tight but I should be all right for the weekend.”
The tremors of the Stoke defeat can still be felt, particularly the outpouring of rage towards Wenger from those Arsenal supporters who would have him leave the club. Members of the faction took a Wenger Out banner into Galatasaray’s stadium and they remain determined to press their point.
Ramsey, though, will always be a Wenger disciple. “He has been under some unfair criticism,” Ramsey said. “But we are all out there and in it together. Every player here wants to work hard for him and we have proven that again against Galatasaray. We wanted to get the result for ourselves and for him. He knows our qualities, he always believes in us and he gives us a great feeling going into games. Every time we go out there, we are representing ourselves, our club and our manager.”
Wenger faces more defensive selection problems against Newcastle. Calum Chambers is suspended following his red card at Stoke while Laurent Koscielny (achilles) and Nacho Monreal (ankle) are struggling to be fit.
