As a precaution before the South Wales derby on Saturday night, Aaron Ramsey withdrew from the Latvia vs. Wales international qualifier in Riga yesterday night.
Following the game, conversations were lively in the Latvian city as Wales earned a well-deserved 2-0 victory to maintain their chances of qualifying for Germany next summer. As talk moved to this Saturday’s game that will be shown LIVE on Sky TV, many Swansea and Cardiff fans were jubilantly celebrating the victory. Ramsey ‘withdrew’ from the Wales match because he wanted to lead his club team when they secure a long-awaited victory over the Swans, according to initial rumors that he was “definitely out” of the match.
After the game, Ramsey personally allayed Cardiff City supporters’ concerns by saying, “It’s only a precaution. I won’t have any problems during the weekend, but I didn’t want to take any chances. After ten games, the Bluebirds are in desperate need of a win over Swansea, which would be their first victory at home against the Welsh club in ten years. The 1-0 win in 2021 at the Swansea.Com Stadium will serve as the only consolation for the Cardiff supporters. Cardiff has only managed two victories in ten games and none in the previous four games.
The Swans won 4-0 in Cardiff and 3-0 at home the season before last, completing the first ever double in the history of the matchups. Many Cardiff supporters were unconcerned by the seven-goal total, but the Swans’ treble from the previous season must have been painful. After Swansea was defeated 2-0, a five goal thriller unfolded, and Cardiff-born Ben Cabango scored the game-winning goal to give Swansea a 3-2 triumph.
Of course, you may cite all the statistics before this fiercely contested derby. But as each of these games will demonstrate, there will be conflict, humiliation, and ultimately, regardless of the outcome, both sets of fans will declare some sort of victory. Fans of the Bluebirds are free to offer as many lame justifications as they want, but there are undoubtedly few left in the list of recent ones that has already been exhausted. The Swans have a manager in Michael Duff who, to be honest, doesn’t exactly understand the significance of this match, as their supporters will undoubtedly say if Saturday ends in loss. His adventures in what was sarcastically referred to as the Our editor Keith Haynes’ description of the “Hamlet derby” between Forest Green and Cheltenham or the intercounty rivalry between Burnley and Blackburn absolutely rings true.
None of these things describe this.
If a yellow card is the concession, then let there be a line of Swansea City players ready to fairly slice Aaron Ramsey in half during Saturday night’s game. Swans fans won’t show Aaron Ramsey any mercy. I’m sorry, but in a South Wales derby match, that is the take and the requirement. Despite what Cardiff City supporters may claim, if anything, the rivalry is now stronger than ever. They both realize in their hearts that Bristol City is meaningless.
Few other Cardiff “names” can match Aaron’s notoriety as a recurring presence in the club’s history; he is at his childhood club. despite playing just sixteen games during their first two years with the club. When he returned to the Bluebirds, the player from Caerphilly said very bluntly, “I turned down a life-changing sum of money by not traveling to Saudi Arabia. Although it was a lot, I’ve been really lucky in my job and thus far I’ve done alright. It was a genuine offer, but I worked very hard to close the sale as soon as I realized I might return to Cardiff.
In Wales, Aaron Ramsey is a pure footballer in a league of his own. He is a class act.
The Swans must enter the field on Saturday night with a cool head and a competitive edge that clearly communicates to their opponents that they are Wales’ top team. Even if that doesn’t occur and the result is the projected draw, the preceding two seasons will remain in the memories for a very long time. Not only have they won four straight games, but the Swans have scored twelve goals while Cardiff have only managed two.
That is dominance, and that is the past.
That’s just really embarrassing.
