Llanelli AFC

Former Arsenal winger Jimmy Carter believes Mesut Ozil could play a more prominent role for the Gunners next season when Aaron Ramsey will have parted ways with the club. The Wales international has already agreed a pre-contract with Juventus and he is expected to join them when his Gunners deal expires at the end of the season.

Speaking on Love Sport Radio, Carter said that the Ozil situation has been bizarre, given the midfielder has been regularly ignored for the first-team duties despite being on club-record wages. He added that the German still remains a quality player for the Gunners to utilise and he could receive more gametime next term when Ramsey would have left the club.

Arsenal have confirmed that midfielder Aaron Ramsey will be joining Juventus on a free transfer when the transfer window reopens in the summer. The Wales international has been with the Gunners for more than a decade and during this period, he has helped them win three FA Cups while scoring the winning goals in two of those.

Despite this, the Welshman has been permitted to make way from the north London club with the hierarchy deciding against renewing his contract beyond the current campaign. A club statement read: “Everyone at Arsenal Football Club wishes Aaron Ramsey a happy and successful future. Aaron’s made a fantastic contribution to our club since joining from Cardiff City in 2008. “He has always been a consummate professional and will always have a special place in the hearts and memories of Arsenal fans around the world. We look forward to Aaron helping the team to a strong end to this season before he joins Juventus in the summer.”

Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici has confirmed that the club are looking at the prospect of securing the signature of midfielder Aaron Ramsey whose contract with Arsenal expires at the end of the season. The Wales international has already been denied a new deal with the Gunners beyond the summer and it appears certain that he would wear a different shirt next season, barring a surprise U-turn from the north London club.

Amidst this, he has been associated with a number of top European sides including Juventus and the Bianconeri’s sporting director Paratici has now spoken about their interest. Speaking to Sky Italia, the 46-year-old confirmed that Ramsey is currently on their radar with him available on a free transfer at the end of the campaign, he said: "Ramsey is a very good player who has been playing at a high level for many years and who plays for an important club. For now, that's it. He is a player whose contract is going to end and we always pay great attention to the situations offered by the transfer market because it is our duty, so we also pay attention to Ramsey."

Former Wales and Real Madrid manager John Toshack believes Gareth Bale could make way from Los Blancos at the conclusion of the ongoing campaign. The Welsh attacker has struggled with regular fitness concerns during his time at the Bernabeu and Toshack feels the 29-year-old could be among the players being shown the exit door when the season ends.

Speaking to ESPN FC, Toshack acknowledged that there is some negativity surrounding the future of Bale, who has not sufficiently impressed on the left wing since Cristiano Ronaldo parted ways with the club last summer, he said: “There is a little bit of negativity about Gareth and his future at Madrid now, frustration at the lack of games he has played. I get the feeling that there will be quite a few changes at the end of this season. But look at all the things he has won -- four Champions Leagues. They will never be able to take that away from him. Given the problems he has had, it is even more incredible what he has managed to achieve.”

Wales new star James Lawrence is just getting to know his teammates better, admitting that he is unfamiliar with English football. The Anderlecht player made the cut for the first time for the first time against Denmark, before featuring in the Albania fixture.

Lawrence went to Europe early in his career where he played for the legendary Ajax youth side. He also played in Slovakia in a bid to get first team action before moving to Anderlecht this summer as his football matured.

Wales head coach Ryan Giggs believes his team can learn from the ‘discipline’ showed by Denmark during the recent Nations League encounter. The Danes were relatively comfortable in their visit to Wales and goals from Nicolas Jorgensen and Martin Braithwaite ensured their promotion to League A of the newly-formed competition.

Speaking after the game, Giggs was pleased with the performance of his side but suggested that Denmark were the better team after they showed the patience and discipline to find the breakthrough, he said: "I'm proud of the lads, they kept going to the end, they excited me and the crowd. You see David Brooks taking players on, it's exciting. But we need to learn the other side, the discipline that Denmark are so good at. But they've been together a long time. "They don't give away many goals, so when they go a goal up very rarely do they give away the game, and they're disciplined. Up until [they scored] it was even, we had a few headers go beyond the post and a couple of injuries."

Arsenal manager Unai Emery has urged Aaron Ramsey to place his complete focus on the weekend Premier League game against Crystal Palace rather than being worried about his contract situation. The Wales international presently has just eight months remaining on his existing deal with the north London giants and he has recently admitted that a contract extension is far from certain after the club withdrew the offer previously on the table.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Emery admitted that the Welshman is going through a tricky period with the club yet to sort out his future beyond the current campaign. However, he does not want the midfielder to shy away from the duties on the playing field which remain the main priority, he said: "My focus and his focus I want on the team. It's true that each player has individual contractual situations to speak with the club, but we need, separately, two things.

Arsenal legend-turned-pundit Ian Wright has backed the Gunners’ stance with regards to the contract situation of midfielder Aaron Ramsey. The Wales international presently has less than nine months remaining on his existing contract with the Gunners and this has increased the speculation of him leaving the Emirates at the end of the season.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, Wright supported the decision made by his former club and suggested that the Welshman’s inconsistency may have backed them off from renewing his contract, he said: “I have to stick with Arsenal as they have to make this kind of stance because of the amount of players we've lost in this fashion. Of course Arsenal would want him to stay but they must make this stance.”

Wales manager Ryan Giggs had defended the decision to offer Gareth Bale with the captain’s armband during the recent Nations League game versus Denmark. The Euro 2016 semi-finalists ran riot against the Republic of Ireland in the group stage opener which they won by a comfortable 4-1 margin but they could not replicate the success against the Danes.

Bale, who was very influential against the Republic, struggled to make much of an impression with the captaincy and there were even suggestions that he was trying too much after even deciding to take throw-ins. However, speaking after the game, Giggs had a different view on the same and does not believe the leadership hampered the performance of the Real Madrid star.

Real Madrid manager Julen Lopetegui has heaped praise on Gareth Bale after the Welshman starred during the 2-0 La Liga triumph over Getafe on Sunday. The Wales international helped the team score the opening goal after providing an assist to Dani Carvajal and later on, he found the scoresheet as the European champions celebrated an opening day victory.

Speaking after the game, Lopetegui was pleased with the performance of the attacker and believes the 29-year-old offers something different on the playing field, he said: “I was pleased with the team in general and Gareth put in a great performance. Bale offers us solutions. He played well, like many of his teammates. In the structure that we are trying to create, there are players with different characteristics and Gareth has his own. He gives us something different and we need to take advantage of that. We are delighted with how it’s going.”