Newly appointed Cymru captain Aaron Ramsey has described his pride on being able to captain his country for a second time.
Having been appointed captain at the age of 20 under Gary Speed, the role was given to Ashley Williams when Chris Coleman took the helm. Now, over a decade later, Ramsey returns to the role, and he can’t wait to get started.
“It’s been a long time since I last had the captaincy. A lot has changed in that period of time, but I feel like I’m ready for it now. I’ve learned a lot over the years, I was 20 years old when I last had it, and it was a very unusual experience at the time; one I’ll be forever grateful for from Gary.
“Now I feel like I’m ready for this, it’s a really proud moment for me and my family and hopefully it can be a very successful time for us.”
Rambo held the captaincy for a year and a half between 2011 and 2012, and while it was a lot to deal with at a young age, it’s also enabled him to learn from others over the years, readying him for his second stint as captain.
“I was 20 years old, and I didn’t quite understand what was going on really. But, at the time, Gary believed in me and thought it was the right thing to do for me and I’d grow into the role and learn as I went along.
“I’ll be forever grateful for that, but now so much has changed in my personal life and in my career. I’ve experienced so many different things so that’s going to help me.
“I’ve played under some great captains as well, including Ashley Williams and Gareth Bale, so there’s bits that you take from a lot of these captains over the years and try to add them to your captaincy.”
The midfielder has also been led under some great captains at club level, including Giorgio Chiellini, Cesc Fabregas and Mikel Arteta.
However, while of course adding aspects of their captaincies, Ramsey will bring his own style, especially in a team with a wealth of young talent.
“I’ll be open to any conversations with younger players if they come up and ask me anything or understand things. I can also put an arm around somebody if they need it.
“But I need to be myself and to lead by example and hopefully that will shine through in the way that I play and the way that I handle myself around the place and in certain situations.”
The future of Welsh football is bright with talents like Brennan Johnson, Luke Harris and Jordan James, but Ramsey will be missing some of the nation’s most revered players in Gareth Bale, Joe Allen, Chris Gunter and Jonny Williams, who have all chosen to retire.
For the Nice midfielder, while it was difficult to process Cymru’s World Cup exit, retirement was never an option for him.
“It was a very difficult time after the World Cup. We did so well to final get there and to experience that, but it was a very strange World Cup and a lot of things, naturally, went through your mind afterwards.
“I had a bit of time, a few weeks to digest it all, and you’re ready to go again. I’ve come back and at club level we’re doing really well and I’m enjoying my football. There’s a lot to look forward to.
“The players like Gareth, Joe, Chris, Jonny, they’ve been instrumental for us over the years, and they’ll forever be part of Welsh history. But there’s opportunities now for the younger players to step up and to show what they’re capable of and create a bit of history of their own.”
Ramsey’s first game as Cymru captain will come in Split on Saturday, as Cymru take on Croatia. Kick off at 19:45.
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