How Cardiff City supporters first reacted to Aaron Ramsey's homecoming - It has not gone to plan | OneFootball

Football League World looks at how Cardiff City supporters reacted to the signing of Aaron Ramsey

Bedlam erupted throughout the Welsh capital on July 15, 2023 when Cardiff City officially announced the emphatic return of the club's prodigal son Aaron Ramsey.

A boyhood supporter, the Caerphilly-born midfielder graduated through Cardiff's youth setup to become a first-team regular at the tender age of 17 before earning a reported £5 million move to Arsenal in the summer of 2008.

Ramsey went on to achieve superstardom at the Emirates Stadium. Though plagued by injuries, the Welshman chalked up more than 300 appearances for Arsenal and lifted three FA Cups, scoring the winner in two final victories over rivals Chelsea.

One of the most talented midfielders of his generation, Ramsey ensured he was never far from the hearts and minds of the Bluebirds faithful by starring for the Welsh national side, whom he still captains to this day, inspiring the Red Dragons to a historic EURO 2016 semi-final run in France.

He later moved on to Juventus and then French outfit Nice before heading home to where it all started nearly two years ago by returning to Cardiff, signing a two-year contract in the process. There was a growing school of thought among supporters at the time that the Bluebirds were capable of contending for Premier League promotion under Erol Bulut, who had been freshly appointed at this stage, and with a player of Ramsey's ilk, pedigree and class in through the door, expectations were high heading into the 2023/24 campaign.

It never quite materialised, with Cardiff instead settling for a 12th-placed finish. Ramsey, unfortunately, played little part, as his blistering start to the season was curtailed by injury. He only mustered 13 appearances in his first season back at Cardiff, but has featured even less this time around.

Successive hamstring injuries have restricted the 34-year-old to 10 appearances and just six starts in the Championship, and his future both with Cardiff and as a player now remains unclear. Ramsey, who has coaching aspirations and a visible future in the dugout, was placed in charge of the side on a caretaker basis for the club's final three games of the season following the sacking of Omer Riza, where he is being assisted by Chris Gunter and fellow Bluebirds midfielder Joe Ralls.

Fans have lapped up Ramsey's temporary managerial audition, especially with unpopular ex-boss Riza displaced in the process. But the ex-Arsenal star being in charge of a Cardiff side poised to suffer relegation to League One for the first time since its inception more than 20 years ago isn't exactly what fans had in mind when he decided to come home from Nice.

How exactly did they react? Football League World takes a peek back through time...

Cardiff City supporters were ecstatic at Aaron Ramsey's return

To say that the Cardiff faithful were happy to see Ramsey's return would be a drastic understatement.

It was not without good reason at the time, of course, and this fan declared that the signing meant it was the best day of their life.

This reaction, meanwhile, summarised the feeling among almost every single Cardiff supporter.

Popular optical retail chain Specsavers, who have gained quite the reputation for sharp and witty replies on X, also got involved, commenting about Cardiff fans' eyes getting damp.

And little wonder...

Cardiff City supporters thanked Vincent Tan for Aaron Ramsey

Amid all the ecstasy, gratitude was not lost on supporters as they flocked to thank the club's hierarchy - namely controversial owner Vincent Tan along with Mehmet Dalman (chairman) and Ken Choo (chief executive) for completing the deal.

Cardiff's top-brass, though Tan in particular, have been unpopular figures in this corner of the world in recent years. Tan has arguably never quite recovered from his infamous, ill-fated decision to rebrand the club's home kit colour and badge to a wretched red theme between 2012 and 2015, despite ploughing in significant investment and losing great sums of money in the process throughout his long-standing reign at the helm, while myriad footballing decisions across the board have been lamented.

However, Cardiff fans took time to thank the trio for Ramsey's signing, which once again marks a stark contrast from the current climate, with a number of fan-led protests having took place against the club's board in recent months, notably at home to Oxford United on Easter Monday.

This fan thanked Tan, Dalman and Choo for giving the fans something to smile about - due credit, as it was put at the time.

A similar response was published by another supporter, who felt "totally overwhelmed" and placed his gratitude to all involved at the club for making the deal happen.