New Contracts For Ramsey, Wilshere And Gibbs

By Our Correspondent
for Arsenal New Today

Published: July 3, 2009

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Young guns Aaron Ramsey, Keiran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere have been given new long-term contracts by Arsenal. The 18-year-old former Cardiff player signed for the Gunners for GBP 5 million last summer and since then has made 22 appearances for the first team in all competitions. Ramsey scored his first goal for the Gunners in the 5-2 victory over Fenerbahce in the UEFA Champions League. “We’re delighted that Aaron has signed a new long term contract. He made a very good contribution in his first season and he showed that he is a very intelligent player with great quality. He is still only 18 and we’re really looking forward to seeing him develop with us in the forthcoming years,” Wenger said. “I am very pleased I chose Arsenal last year. I always knew that Arsenal was the Club for me, they had the best plan for me. They have a history of bringing through youngsters, giving them opportunities and turning them into world-class players,” Ramsey said after signing his new contract. He continued, “I’m very pleased to sign a new deal. I think I’ve had a decent first season, I’ve learnt a lot and now I’m looking forward to next season. I am committed to this Club, I am an Arsenal player and I want to be an Arsenal player. Obviously I have grown up a bit in the past year because I live on my own now, so I have to look after myself. I am a bit more independent now. But I wouldn’t say I have changed too much.” Commenting on his plans for the future, Ramsey said that he would try to emulate another youngster in the Arsenal squad – Theo Walcott. He said, “We both came from Championship clubs to join Arsenal and I think my first year has been quite similar to Theo’s first year at Arsenal. But then in the second year he played a lot more games and got more experience under his belt, so hopefully I can take the same path. We’ve talked about it before; I’ve asked him how he found it when he was in my position. Now I want to be more regular in the starting eleven, get a lot more games under my belt and hopefully start more games as well. They are my targets.” Another youngster to sign a long-term extension is England Under-21 international Kieran Gibbs. Gibbs announced his arrival during the FA Youth Cup in 2007, which earned him a place in the 2007/08 pre-season fixture against Barnet and a start against Italian giants Inter Milan in the inaugural Emirates Cup in July 2007. He went on to make his full first team debut in the fourth round victory over Sheffield United in the Carling Cup in the same year. Last season, the young left-back made 21 first team appearances, out of which eight were in the Premier League and four were in the Champions League. His performances led to his call up in the England squad for the UEFA Under-21 Championships in Sweden, where he helped his team reach the finals. “Kieran made such a great impact last season and the progress he made throughout the year was fantastic. Kieran is an intelligent player with huge quality and he proved last season with his performances that he has great potential. We’re delighted that Kieran has committed his future to Arsenal and we’re all excited to watch his future development at the Club,” Wenger said. 17-year-old Jack Wilshere, who signed professional terms with Arsenal in January, was another youngster to sign a new long-term contract. He enjoyed a successful last season and at the age of 16 years and 256 days, became the youngest ever player to represent Arsenal in the League. He made eight first-team appearances and scored one goal. At the age of 16 years 329 days, Wilshere also became the youngest ever player to represent Arsenal in European competition. “It’s such great news that Jack has signed a new long-term contract. Jack made great progress last season, playing at Under-18s, Reserves and First Team level and we all witnessed what a great young talent he is. At still 17 years of age, the potential is huge for Jack and we’re all delighted that he has committed his long-term future to Arsenal Football Club,” Wenger said after the contract was signed.

New Contracts For Ramsey, Wilshere And Gibbs

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