Saying Goodbye Ainʻt Easy: the three Arsenal players whose departures broke my heart

It can be tough seeing Arsenal players leave. Not always… there are definitely players who overstay their welcome – [INSERT NAME HERE] – but occasionally a player has wormed his way into your heart, for whatever reason, and saying goodbye can be tough.

Granit Xhakaʻs goodbye made me think about some of the other players whose recent departures have tweaked my heartstrings.

Here are the three recent departees who fit in the “Gone Too Soon” category for me.

Olivier Giroud

I still think letting Giroud go was one of the biggest mistakes Arsenal ever made. So sue me if you are part of the Giroud Is A Donkey camp. The OGʻs goal-scoring record for Arsenal, France and for the clubs he joined since leaving us proves that you are suffering from some sort of advanced cognitive dissonance.

For a giant of a man, Olly had the deftest touch, and scored some truly incredible goals. Everyone remembers the famous scorpion kick – but the reason Olivier will always have a special place in my heart is for the two FA Cup Finals he helped win us with Aaron Ramsey.

I can only wonder what would have happened if he had been playing for us instead of Chelsea in Baku. And to see him pop up in the very late stages of the Champions League and World Cup Finals five years after we declared him past his sell-by date truly hurts. We have needed what Giroud brings to the table for the past few seasons: an impact sub who actually makes an impact.

Oh… and his song was easily my favourite. Lost my voice singing it more times than I care to remember.

Aaron Ramsey

People forget how similar Aaron Ramseyʻs story arc is to Granit Xhakaʻs… During the deepest darkest WengerOut black-binbag days, Aaron Ramseyʻs name was like a swear word on most Gooner tongues.

Despite the awful injury he suffered at the feet of Storcʻs Ryan Shawcross – and his subsequent miraculous recovery – there was a period when Wengerʻs trust in an under-performing Ramsey, playing him in almost every position, earned the Welshman an Eboue-level negative response from the Emirates faithless.

However, once Le Prof found Aaronʻs best position: as a tireless box-to-box midfielder alongside the little wizard, Santi Cazorla and one Mikel Arteta, Ramsey started to shine. As far as Iʻm concerned, his two FA Cup-winning goals cemented his Arsenal Legend status in my eyes. The late winner against Hull was one of the most joyous moments I have ever witnessed.

Ramseyʻs departure from Arsenal was a poorly managed and sad affair, as was so much during the Emery/Sanllehi reign. Heʻll always have a special place in my Gooner heart.

Santi Cazorla

Apart from being my favourite player of the last ten years, and one of the most talented two-footed players to have graced the Emirates carpet, Santi was a ray of sunshine. In case you forgot just how wonderful the diminutive Spaniard was, have a squizz at his farewell video below:

Santiʻs contribution to the 2014 FA Cup Final comeback was massive. I was sitting directly behind him at Wembley when he put that free kick into McGregorʻs top right corner. The ball seemed to hang in the air for ages as he curled it in from 35 yards. His wizardy was the much-needed spark that lit Arsenalʻs fire. What a day. Gracias, maestro.

The fact that Santi didnʻt get the farewell he deserved still stings…

Conclusion

I definitely donʻt put Xhaka on the same pedestal as Giroud, Ramsey and Cazorla… however, I have a niggling doubt that we could have done with the Swissʻs services for one more year, as we venture back into Champions League, and to relieve some of the pressure that is sure to mount on Rice and Havertz.

A whole lot has been written about Granitʻs redemption: I donʻt intend to add to it. Needless to say, I will always be grateful for his remarkable contribution to the season past. Iʻm pleased his final day game gave him his first Premier League brace, and the opportunity to do a lap of appreciation before an adoring Emirates crowd.

How about you: are there any players that you hated saying goodbye to? Let me know in the comments below.

Peace!

invinciblog

I was eleven-and-a-half. My family had just emigrated from Rhodesia to South Africa. All the kids on my street supported United or Liverpool, because of their Southern African goalkeeper connections: Bailey for United and Grobbelaar for ‘Pool. Problem was: I didn’t like the colour red – so when FA Cup Final day came around in 1979, I supported the team in yellow, even though their name sounded like “Asshole”. At the final whistle, I had bragging rights and a team that had won my heart.

Then I discovered that the Gunners also wore red. Luckily, I remained loyal, and the Arsenal has kicked my heart around ever since… (apart from a few lost years in the ’90s and early ’00s, when I was busy doing grownup things as a composer in Hollywood).

Abandoned invinciblog.com to launch this site with 1 Nil Down 2 One Up blogfather Dave Seager – and we have used this platform to help launch the writing careers of a number of amazing Arsenal bloggers.