Early Start will Benefit Ramsey

While some believe that clubs will suffer from having their players competing at the Olympic Games, Arsenal could benefit from having Aaron Ramsey involved in   Team GB.

The Welshman will go into the Premier League season fresh off the back of the Games, possibly giving him a head-start over a lot of his rival midfielders, in terms of match-fitness and sharpness, and allowing him to cement his place in the starting line-up.

Ramsey could also bolster Arsenal’s favour with fans who bet on the Champions League. The Gunners are currently 20/1 to win in Europe, next season.

After his year out of the game with his horrific leg break, Ramsey will only benefit from getting his season off to an early start.

The 21-year old has managed to come back from his horrendous double leg fracture sustained from that Ryan Shawcross tackle in early 2010.

This season could be the year when Ramsey proves that his injury has not stopped him fulfilling the potential that first caught the eye of Arsene Wenger at 17-years old, when breaking into the Cardiff side.

The Arsenal midfield looks exciting, going into the future, in the hands of Ramsey and Jack Wilshere, but the Welshman will know that this season will be important in convincing his manager that he need not bring in another midfielder before the end of the summer.

Wenger has always been a huge admirer of Ramsey’s talents and will be interested to see how the youngster handles competing at the Olympics before the Premier League season gets underway, later in the month.

Already his national team’s captain, Ramsey has proven he is mature beyond his years. Competing at the Games will only add another string to the Welshman’s bow, adding to the great deal of experience that the young midfielder has already gained during his short career, so far.

If nothing else, having Ramsey at the Olympics will at least add some appeal to watching a pretty uninspiring Team GB side.

Football lovers concerned about the bottom half of the table can demonstrate their allegiances by placing a bet on relegation on Bet365.

£8m for RVP just ridiculous

The derisory £8m bid made by Juventus for Arsenal star Robin van Persie this week has left many people wondering just how good the Dutch striker is.

Arsenal swiftly rejected the offer for their top scorer, as they are reportedly looking to sell van Persie for at least £20m. The 28-year-old scored 27 goals for the Gunners this season, and without him Arsené Wenger’s side would not have finished in the top six of the Premier League.

Having revealed he won’t sign a new contract, Manchester City are the favourites to sign him this summer according to Betfair Premier league markets.

Juventus’ miniscule offer will come as a shock to Arsenal fans who value their star striker much higher. His goals have earned Wenger a 14th consecutive run in the UEFA Champions League, worth prize money far greater than RVP’s transfer value. Chelsea reportedly earned £47m in winning the trophy last season.

So what is van Persie’s real market value? At 28-years-old, the Dutch striker has surely peaked and should maintain his current form for a season or two, but no longer.

As pundit Lee Dixon has recently highlighted in his column, his poor performances at Euro 2012 will have reduced his value and the evident poor attitude of the entire Dutch team won’t have shown him in good a light either.

Van Persie’s injury record is also of concern. It has only been these past 18 months that he has finally recovered from a long spell of niggling problems. Should he break down – like we know he can – in Juventus stripes after the Italian giants have forked out £30m for the striker, it would be seen as money very badly spent.

The £8m figure was never really going to tempt Wenger into selling his main asset, but it does show just how realistic Juve are about van Persie’s capabilities.