Aaron Ramsey has broken his silence on missing the all-important penalty as Rangers lost in the Europa League Final to Eintracht Frankfurt.
After a 1-1 draw in Seville the clash – which was potentially the biggest in Rangers’ history – went to spot-kicks.
With Eintracht Frankfurt hammering home all five of their spot kicks, Aaron Ramsey was the only Rangers player to miss a penalty and the moment is etched in Ibrox history for the wrong reasons.
Speaking about the moment for really the first time, now Cardiff City midfielder Aaron Ramsey has indirectly criticised Giovanni van Bronckhorst for subbing him on to take the penalty.
“I just wish that I’d played longer in the final,” Ramsey told Four Four Two.
“I felt I could have brought something different to the table had I come on a bit earlier. I was essentially brought on solely to take a penalty in the shootout, which I’m not sure is the best idea.
“That played on my mind as I went to take it, instead of being clear about where I wanted to put it. I’m still gutted that I missed that penalty and gutted for the fans that we couldn’t lift the trophy for them.”
Aaron Ramsey praises “special” Rangers despite penalty miss
The ex-Arsenal and Juventus midfielder also paid tribute to the club as he reflected on what was a largely disappointing few months in Glasgow.
Whilst the loan stint will always be remembered for that penalty miss, Aaron Ramsey had some positive words to say about Rangers and pointed to some personal and collective success.
“I was really excited to go to Rangers – I wanted to experience the Old Firm derby and I knew they were playing in the Europa League, which I was pretty excited about,” said Ramsey.
“I had a couple of injuries during my time there, which made it difficult to get into any kind of rhythm. I [also] had a horrible case of Covid shortly before I signed, which meant I didn’t arrive in the best shape and it was no surprise that my body broke down.
“It was frustrating but I still made some great memories – the incredible run to that final, playing in an Old Firm game, scoring in an Old Firm game and lifting the Scottish Cup….it’s a special club.”
Aaron Ramsey joined Rangers on loan from Juventus in the January of 2022 before going on to make 13 appearances for the club, scoring twice.
