On Sunday, Arsenal beat Newcastle United 1-0, giving supporters the opportunity to say goodbye to players who won’t be able to see again in red and white as it was the final home match of 2024/25.
Kieran Tierney bows from Emirates Stadium after 143 appearances for the people of North London.
Gorguinho also leaves at the end of the contract. He is probably not remembered as affectionately as Tierney’s, but his ultimate professionalism during the two years he was at Arsenal was a joy to see.
It would be sad to see them go, but it certainly wasn’t as emotional as some farewells we gave in modern times.
The 2018 Arsene Wenger exit will be down in history, but it is difficult for a certain Aaron Ramsey Shed to forget about his tears when he sets out under Unai Emery in 2019.
Since his departure, Arsenal hasn’t had too many midfielder goals. That said, they may have found it now.
What made Aaron Ramsey so special
Ramsey, the winner of the three FA Cups, the scorer of the final goal of the two Cups at Wembley, will forever be remembered as a big game player in these parts.
The way he joined the club set the tone of dramatic time in the British capital. Manchester United announced that he will sign them on their official website.
Signed by Cardiff, it didn’t take Ramsey long to make an impression, but that horrifying leg destruction against Stoke in February 2010 was a huge setback.
A few months later, Wales International was fortunately exploring a great career in the game.
Who can forget that amazing season of 2013/14? Ramsey scored the winner in the extra time in the FA Cup final, one of 16 goals on just 34 outings throughout the campaign.
A true box-to-box star, Welsh International arrived in the penalty area and became the master who scored from midfield.
However, since then, Arsenal has not had too many players who could find the net from similar zones.
Probably the last one was Granit Xhaka. In his final year in Switzerland against Gunner, he scored nine times and registered seven more assists in 47 matches.
So how did Arsenal replace the dynamic duo?
Arsenal’s new Granite Zaka and Aaron Ramsey
A few years ago, Martin Odegaard’s format certainly suggested that he could replace the pair. In fact, no midfielder scored more than 15 Norway’s goals in the Premier League in 2022/23.
That being said, he is not a box-to-box midfielder. He pushes hard, but he doesn’t do even dirty work on the field.
Instead, Mikel Arteta’s modern answer to Ramsey and Xhaka is a particular Declan rice. Ah, where is the gunners going without him this season?
Of course you have these two notable free kicks against Real Madrid, but he also came up with some important moments elsewhere.
He’s not just a free kick master, but his corner delivery is one of the best in Europe this season. We pay tribute to Nicholas’ job offer for putting the former West Ham man in a set piece for the backend last season.
Interestingly, Rice initially signed as a defensive midfielder, but throughout 2024/25 he was selected as the left 8, a position he created himself.
Declan Rice – Seasonal | |||
|---|---|---|---|
season | game | the goal | assist |
2021/22 | 50 | 5 | 4 |
2022/23 | 50 | 5 | 4 |
2023/24 | 51 | 7 | 10 |
2024/25 | 51 | 9 | 10 |
Statistics through the transfer market. | |||
This difference was felt in the first leg of Thailand in Arsenal’s Champions League semi-finals with PSG. The £240,000 per week smashed Madrid with both feet from a more advanced role in the midfield, but he had to play further backwards due to Thomas Party’s suspension.
Rice is certainly good in sitting in front of the defense, but Arsenal couldn’t get up the pitch right away and lost one of the target threats. That probably explains why the club is reportedly wanting to bring in Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi this summer. More Yorguinho type Spaniard gives Rice the key and makes its No. 8 his permanent position in the team.
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So why did he flourish so much? Well, like Xhaka, he has a great engine and his technique is top notch.
Meanwhile, like Ramsey, he’s become quite good at arriving at the second half of the area or the edge of the box to score goals. In the words of Arsenal writer Connor Ham, he is a true “monster.”
We saw that in person against Newcastle on Sunday. Odegard found the ball on the right and placed it on the rice path. Rice was ready and burned the ball past Nick Pope waiting for the edge of the penalty area.
It was the ninth strike of a campaign signing £105 million that rivaled the haul of Xhaka two years ago. He also scored Rice’s highest scoring return ever in one season. Not bad at all.
When Arsenal’s season players are announced in the coming weeks, it’s certainly true that there will be only two candidates, Gabriel and Rice. For a magical night against Madrid alone, Rice is our man.
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