Aaron Ramsey Wanted Arsenal Stay, Deal Was Agreed – Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger lifted the lid on Aaron Ramsey’s contract saga at Arsenal and revealed the Welshman’s desire to stay.

The Gunners had agreed terms with Ramsey in their final negotiation but then went back on their promises, eventually ending a 11-year relationship and sending him off to Juventus for free.

Ramsey’s departure is a large blot on Arsenal’s transfer history since losing a player of his calibre is turning out to be problematic for the side. Wenger initially started negotiations with the midfielder but left it up to the hands of Unai Emery and the Gunners board after his club exit in 2018.

“I met (with) him once, he wanted to stay at Arsenal,” Wenger said. “They had an agreement and the club came back on that, from what I understood. I tried a long time to extend his contract, but sometimes there are influences of agents as well.

“Every case is different. You have to understand in decision-making it’s always who is influential…What I know from him, he was keen to stay.”

The Arsenal fans were quite disturbed by how the club had handled Ramsey’s contract, especially when underperforming players like Mesut Ozil and Granit Xhaka were handed sizeable extensions.