Former Gunner Aaron Ramsey has announced his retirement from football.
He joined Arsenal at the age of 17, choosing to move from Cardiff City to North London rather than Old Trafford after Manchester United sent Gary Neville to try and woo him to that particular club.
The charms of Arsene Wenger were far stronger, and he made his debut in August 2008. He would go on to make 369 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 64 goals and providing 60 assists.
He grabbed the winner in both the 2014 and 2017 FA Cup finals, condemning Hull City and Chelsea to defeat, before leaving in 2019 to join Juventus. His post-Arsenal career was nomadic, with spells at Rangers, Nice, Cardiff City again, and UNAM Pumas in Mexico.
There was also a measure of ‘what if’ about his time in red and white, related to the horrendous leg break inflicted on him by Ryan Shawcross in February 2010, which undoubtedly was a factor in a career punctuated by injuries.
He also hated Piers Morgan, who made disparaging comments about him on social media, refusing to shake his hand after the twat-in-chief tried to corner him at an event. “I don’t think I want to do that”, he reportedly said after Morgan offered his hand.
In short, a player who gave a lot to the club, who could have been even better but for that injury, and one who gave us some very special moments, not least that incredible goal against Galatasaray.
We wish him luck in his retirement and with whatever comes next.