If Manchester United do make a move for Aaron Ramsey this will be their third attempt to land his signature.
They tried to sign him in the summer of the 2008 from Cardiff , before Jose Mourinho reportedly instructed his club to get him on the cheap in the most recent transfer window.
Reports this week claim that Manchester United are keen on landing Ramsey on a free next summer after Arsenal withdrew their contract offer .
With Ed Wooward keeping a firm grip on the Glazers’ purse strings, which saw United outspent by the likes of Fulham , Wolves and Brighton this summer, as well as their usual rivals Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea , the club obviously decided to bide its time on a player that will soon be available for nothing.
A decade after first trying to lure Ramsey to Old Trafford, is the time now right for the Welshman to make the move?
A few weeks after United were crowned champions of England and Europe in 2008, they announced on their website that they were “delighted” to have agreed terms with Cardiff City for the transfer of 17-year-old Aaron Ramsey. They also added the deal was subject to agreeing a contract with the player and him passing a medical.
Seemingly it hadn’t crossed their minds that the Welsh teenager, who had grown up supporting United and idolising Ryan Giggs, could possibly sign for anyone else.
A week later, it was confirmed that he was joining Arsenal.
There were a few things that swung the transfer in Arsenal’s favour. The first was that United had proposed the option of Ramsey staying at Cardiff on loan for a further season, while Arsenal wanted him to move to the Emirates straight away.
While he only went on to make one league start for Arsenal in his first season, and just a further eight appearances from the bench, he was given his first taste of Champions League football. He was ready for big time and United apparently weren’t ready to offer it to him back then.
Another black mark against United was that they had thought getting Gary Neville to show Ramsey around their Carrington training ground would be enough to impress him. By contrast, Arsene Wenger flew the player out to Switzerland on a private jet to meet him personally and make his pitch for why Arsenal were the right club for him. Ramsey seemingly agreed with the Arsenal boss and passed up on the opportunity to play for Sir Alex Ferguson, and alongside his “all-time Welsh hero” , Giggs.
When Giggs was a teenager, Ferguson showed up on his doorstep to convince him to play for United, a story Ramsey was likely more than familiar with, so appreciated Wenger’s determination to get his signature.
"I felt more wanted at Arsenal,” Ramsey later explained .
“They did more things to try and get me. They had a plan set out for me and knew exactly how they wanted to develop me. The sort of thing they said was, ‘you can improve on this’ and ‘this is what you are good at, so we will do this’.
“I think the boss [Arsene Wenger] here has brought through a lot more youngsters and given them opportunities on a regular basis. And that is what he believes in, picking out talented young players and turning them into great players.”
While there’s no denying that Wenger had a good record at bringing young players through, Ramsey was arguably doing Ferguson a disservice with that comment. United’s legendary manager had remained committed to Sir Matt Busby’s philosophy of giving youngsters a chance. The difference between the two managers was that Ferguson turned his young players in to champions, while Wenger went 13 years without winning the title before leaving Arsenal at the end of last season.
Still, Ramsey didn’t have a crystal ball, so while United were the best team in England and Europe at the time, the Welshman likely had the misguided belief that his chances of winning silverware at the Emirates were almost as strong as they would be at Old Trafford. After all, Arsenal had led the league table for much of the season before, until the meltdown following a draw against Birmingham in the February, which saw captain William Gallas have a strop in the centre-circle after the final whistle .
Little did he know that United would go on to win the league a further three times over the next five seasons, play in another two Champions League finals, while he would have to wait six years before ever winning a trophy, the FA Cup in 2014. This competition remains the only silverware he has claimed in his decade at the club, although has managed this on three occasions.
Ramsey will never get the opportunity to go back in time and win the league under Ferguson. Joining present day United does little to boost his chances of ever being a champion either, given how far behind the strongest teams they are currently.
Yet out of the two, it is likely that Ramsey has the biggest regrets. United succeeded without him and even at his peak there was little to suggest he was an improvement on what United had.
In contrast, Ramsey will likely end his career without ever having won the title and neither have too much to get excited about now. Arsenal to United is more a less a sideways move these days, although he will certainly earn more in Manchester.
The Welshman is a decent player and on a free transfer, or potentially a discounted fee in January, United could certainly do worse. He will bring the added experience and composure that United are often lacking.
But if their aspirations are to close the gap between them and City, he’s hardly the marquee signings the fans would crave.
- Scott Paterson writes for Republik of Mancunia . You can follow him on Twitter @R_o_M