Are Arsenal stalling Ramsey's contract extension?

Aaron Ramsey has spent the last decade with Arsenal Football Club and has been an integral part of the team for the last 5 years or so. In a situation that has previously plagued the club - of players entering their final year of the contract without signing an extension - Arsenal have failed to quell the fears of yet another marquee player leaving the club for nothing in return.

Although media reports have been claiming that the Welsh midfielder is likely to move to Stamford Bridge and is hence not keen on signing an extension, there is plenty to substantiate the charge that it is the club who is stalling over an extension for Aaron Ramsey.

The man who won Arsenal their first trophy after a decade of irrelevance has made his stance clear and has alluded on numerous occasions that his heart lies at the Emirates stadium.

“I still have a year left,” he said during the ongoing pre-season tournament in Singapore. “I’m looking forward to the next season. To being in an Arsenal shirt and doing my best for this club. I’m hoping to have a successful season under the new manager and under the new direction that this club is going.

“We’re yet to come to an agreement with what we want. Maybe something might happen.

“I think for football reasons, this is a great club to be at. And this manager, I’m really excited to get going under him. But we’re just yet to come to an agreement, so we’ll have to wait and see.”

“It’s my decision. Whatever decision I decide to take, it’s on me," Ramsey added. “So [do I feel] under pressure? No. I think the only thing that makes it awkward is that you guys keep on asking the question.

“It’s like having a baby in the car saying ‘are we there yet? Are we there yet?’

“But with me, I’m a player who always gives 100 per cent, regardless of what’s going on. I will be doing no different to that. I will give absolutely everything to try and achieve something special and to try and win football games.”

Ramsey with the captain's armband.

Aaron Ramsey said being offered the Arsenal captaincy would be tough to turn down, amid a five-year extension on the table for him that is ready to be signed.

And when asked by football.london whether the offer of the armband could be the thing that sways his decision, Ramsey hinted that it could.

“The captaincy is obviously a massive responsibility,” he said, while in Singapore for Arsenal's pre-season tour. “It would be an honour to captain this club.

“The manager has yet to decide, so we’ll have to wait and see for that. But if the opportunity was there I don’t think any player would say no to it.”

Meanwhile, Unai Emery has reiterated his stance on wanting to keep the player at the club. Speaking after Arsenal's 5-1 thumping of Paris Saint-Germain in a pre-season friendly at the weekend, Emery was once again asked about Ramsey's contract situation.

To which the Spaniard replied by stressing just how important the Welshman is to his plans for next season.

"Football changes every day," he told reporters. "I think about the match today first, then training tomorrow, the match on Saturday to continue our preparation.

"I think Aaron is an important player for us. The contract is one thing for the club and the player."

There is plenty of evidence to suggest that Aaron Ramsey is more than willing to put pen to paper on his contract extension, but is the club wary of wanting to shell out the wages he is likely to command considering the leverage he has with just one year to go on his current contract.

---

Are Arsenal doing enough to hold onto Ramsey? Let us know in the comments section below.