Arsenal Eye Up Aaron Ramsey Replacement But Face Fierce Competition From Liverpool

Arsenal Eye Up Aaron Ramsey Replacement But Face Fierce Competition From Liverpool
19:51, 17 Oct 2018

Aaron Ramsey is widely expected to leave Arsenal at the end of the season once his contract runs out, although there is an outside chance the Welshman could leave in the New Year should a Premier League side or European outfit come in for his services.

Should Ramsey depart, boss Unai Emery will be keen to snap up a midfielder to fill the void, with Gazzetta dello Sport reporting that the Gunners have set their sights on Cagliari midfielder Nicolo Barella.

Problem is, there appears to be quite a few clubs scrambling around for the Italian - including Liverpool and Inter Milan - who has been described 'one of the best in Italy' by none other than Italian legend Andrea Pirlo.

So, who is the 21-year-old and why is he suddenly in such high demand?

Barella made his professional debut for Cagliari back in 2014, before venturing off to Como on-loan in order to bag more playing time during the second-half of the 2015/16 campaign. He then returned to the Sardinian side, making 30 appearances in 2016/17, then sported the shirt 35 times last term, during which he netted six goals.

The playmaker made his debut for Italy during the international break, in a 1-1 draw against Ukraine, playing 78 minutes of the game, then played the full 90 minutes of his country’s 1-0 win away to Poland.

Barella, who tends to play on the right side of a midfield three, is famed for his intelligence, vision and composure on the ball - check it out for yourself in the video below.

Back during the summer Barella said this when asked about his future:

"The transfer market? I feel at home with the team of my city.

"Together with the president, I decided to prolong my relationship with them, rejecting the offers that came my way.

"I didn't even take them into consideration. My first choice has always been Cagliari."

However, he may well have to reevaluate his options should, as expected, a number of European heavyweights come calling in January or next summer.

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