FUTURES OF RAMSEY AND WILSHERE TO SHAPE DIRECTION OF EMERY’S REIGN
AARON RAMSEY and Jack Wilshere are two vital pieces in Unai Emery’s transfer puzzle at Arsenal.
The new Gunners head coach has told the club’s hierarchy that keeping midfielders makes sense.
But with Wales ace Ramsey yet to commit to a new deal – he has a year left on his current one – and Wilshere a free agent, Emery wants answers fast.
The former Paris Saint-Germain boss, who took the Arsenal reins last Wednesday, plans talks with both players before pre-season training begins in late June.
And if he suspects they are stalling then he will instruct the Gunners board to pull the plug on negotiations – and prepare for life without them.
Confirming that no-nonsense approach, Emery, 46, said: “I want to speak to all the players about how inspired and excited I am.
“I want them to feel that. We all need to give 100 per cent. That’s what I’m looking for from every player.”
Persuading Ramsey, 27, recently voted Arsenal Player of the Year, to stay would be a personal coup for the new boss.
Yet, unlike Wilshere, 26 – who will go for nothing if he leaves – at least selling the former Cardiff City playmaker would raise upwards of £30million.
In some ways that makes retaining England outcast Wilshere’s services potentially more valuable to the north Londoners.
Until both situations become clear, to what extent Emery must shake-up the squad inherited from Arsene Wenger is far from obvious.
What we do know is the club’s summer transfer kitty is limited to £75m – a scarcely significant sum in today’s inflated market.
Which is why Emery’s ability to cope on limited resources at both Valencia and Sevilla made him such an attractive choice for the Gunners.
At is stands, the biggest Arsenal names under threat right now are Shkodran Mustafi, Granit Xhaka and Danny Welbeck.
Germany defender Mustafi, 26, has been poor since his £35m switch from Valencia two years ago.
With Freiburg centre-back Caglar Soyuncu, 21, a £25m target, and out-ofcontract veteran Juventus right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner also on Arsenal’s radar, Mustafi’s time could be at at end.
Much the same applies to Switzerland international Xhaka, 25, as Emery attempts to make Ivory Coast and Nice midfielder Jean-Michael Seri, 26, his first major buy – at £35m.
Whether Xhaka, who cost that amount from Borussia Monchengladbach, is sold to pay for Seri probably depends on how those talks with Ramsey and Wilshere pan out.
England international Welbeck, 27, faces similar uncertainty.
As a striker, he is behind PierreEmerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazatte in the pecking order.
On the flanks, he is merely cover for top earners Henrikh Mikhitaryan and Mesut Ozil.
And news that forgotten Spanish hitman Lucas Perez, 29, on loan at Deportivo last season, will return for pre-season is another worry for Welbeck.
When unveiling Emery in midweek, Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis called for unity amid the upheaval.
“If we’re together and remember our motto, Victoria Concordia Crescit – Victory Comes Through Harmony – the sky’s the limit for us,” said Gazidis.
That, though, will be easier said than done – with pivotal decisions on so many futures still to be made.