Spooked- Aaron Ramsey blames van Bronckhorst mind games for his iconic penalty miss

Aaron Ramsey has blamed Giovanni van Bronckhorst for his penalty miss against Eintracht Frankfurt in the final of the Europa League.

The Welshman was a celebrated January signing on loan from Juventus but beyond the hype his influence was minimal as Celtic turned around a six point deficit to lift the title.

Two days after signing, Ramsey sat in the Directors Box at Celtic Park as Ange Postecoglou’s side demolished their city rivals 3-0 to move into top place, a position they retained through until the end of the campaign.

Ramsey’s influence was minimal, when van Bronckhorst named his side for the Europa Final he was on the bench and watched as Steve Davis, Fashion Sakala, Scott Arfield, James Sands and Kemar Roofe were sent on to turn the game.

In the 118th minute the unhappy Fashion Sakala was substituted, Ramsey was sent on with the specific task of taking a penalty, the rest is history with the Welshman a hero at football grounds across Scotland.

Picking up on an interview with Four Four Two magazine, the Daily Record reports Ramsey saying:

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.

After a season in the French League Ramsey is back at Cardiff City, scoring with a penalty against Swansea on Friday night.