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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Aidan Smith

Aaron Ramsey takes aim at Gio van Bronckhorst for Rangers Europa League penalty miss

Aaron Ramsey has opened up on his penalty heartache after Rangers lost out against Frankfurt in the Europa League final.

The Welshman was the unlucky man to miss in the penalty shootout as Giovanni van Bronckhorst's side went so close to creating European history in Seville.

The miss still haunts Ramsey to this day, but he pins some of the blame on his manager for not throwing him into the action earlier than he did.

He told FourFourTwo: “I just wish that I’d played longer in the final. 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.

“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.

"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."

Reflecting on his time in Glasgow, Ramsey added: “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.”

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