John Hartson delivers Aaron Ramsey loan verdict as ex-Celtic striker laughs off Gascoigne/Laudrup comparison

Aaron Ramsey will be remembered by Rangers fans as the man who missed the decisive penalty in the Europa League final and his fellow countryman John Hartson admits he always knew he would be a flop.

The Welsh international joined on loan from Juventus during the January transfer window, with many pundits and supporters describing the move the biggest transfer Scottish football had seen in a long time.

Ex-Light Blues striker Kris Boyd compared the 31-year-old’s arrival to Paul Gascoigne’s move to Govan, but Hartson believes Ramsey failed to live up to the hype.

His time in Scotland was hampered due to fitness and injury troubles, with the midfielder managing just a handful of appearances.

Ramsey ended his short-term deal with a Scottish Cup winners medal, but Celtic legend Hartson insists he was never going to make the same impact as Ibrox legends Gazza and Brian Laudrup.

Speaking on the Go Radio Football Show, Hartson said: “I wasn’t particularly surprised (the move didn’t work out). He hadn’t played a lot of football.

“Everybody thought, myself included, that he would have a bigger impact because of his previous FA Cup final goals at Arsenal and some of the things he has done for the national team.

“He clearly wasn’t ready in terms of his fitness and wasn’t up to speed. When he did play I thought he did OK. He got the goal at Ibrox in the 2-1 defeat (for Celtic).

“He scored a goal at Dundee, had a little run of games and then got injured in the Scottish Cup semi-final which kept him out again.

“I think it’s probably more frustrating when it’s topped off with that penalty miss as well in the final.

“I think he will have enjoyed his experience, getting to the final and obviously wanning the Scottish Cup, but overall, I would have to say he never really got going or got any momentum.

“It just hasn’t happened, and he’s no Gascoigne, ok? He’s no Gascoigne, at his best. He’s no Laudrup at his best.

“I’m a huge fan of Aaron Ramsey and he’s a fantastic player, but he’s not a Paul Gascoigne.

“It’s like signing another fantastic centre-forward and saying he’s as good as (Henrik) Larsson. No way. Kyogo would need to stay for the next seven or eight yeard and score 250 goals.

“People tend to link players and say things for the sake of saying things.”

Meanwhile, highly-rated Rangers youngster Rory Wilson has revealed he will quit Ibrox this summer in favour of a move to England.

A host of English Premier League clubs have been tracking the 16-year-old striker, who netted a stunning 49 goals last season for the club’s youth team, with Aston Villa leading the race for his signature.

The Scotland Under-17 international, who scored against Denmark in the European finals earlier this week, confirmed his exit last night.

He said: “Rangers have been brilliant for me, there’s no getting away from that. But it’s time to move on and get to the next level.

“I’d like to thank Rangers for everything they have done for me because it’s been great for me over the last eight years, but it’s time to leave.

“I’ll probably be going down south. We’ll wait and see what happens n the next couple of weeks. Everything will be sorted very soon.

“At Rangers, all the coaches have been fantastic for me. I can’t thank them enough for their help.

“I want to go down south and try and prove myself and become a top player and that’s what I am going to do.”