Aaron Ramsey has revealed a school teacher broke the news to him about his first ever inclusion in a Cardiff City squad.
The Caerphilly-born ace made his senior debut as a substitute during the Bluebirds’ clash with Hull City in April 2007.
In featuring against the Tigers at Ninian Park, Ramsey became the capital club’s youngster ever player.
But during an Instagram Live chat with former One Direction star Niall Horan, Ramsey revealed Cardiff had to obtain permission of his school before he was granted the opportunity to make his first team bow for his boyhood club as he was only 16 years of age and still in full-time education.
“It was weird. I was still in school at the time. I remember one of my teachers coming up to me, they said they’d just had a phone call from Cardiff City, they had to ask for permission for me to play at the weekend because I was still in school,” said the Wales star.
“I thought ‘no chance, they would have just told me’.
“I went on my phone at lunchtime. I rang my mum and dad, then my dad phoned me back and said ‘it’s true, you’re in the squad’. I couldn’t believe it.
“I’d trained with them [first team squad] a few times but I was never expecting to be in the squad on that day. For that to happen and then for me to go out there and to become the youngest ever player to play for Cardiff, that’s what I’ve been striving for all my life, to make it professionally and to play for Cardiff. To achieve that and to break a record was surreal.
“I walked back into school the next week like Floyd Mayweather. Or Conor McGregor!”
He became a key figure in the side that reached the FA Cup final under Dave Jones in his first full campaign at Cardiff during the 2007/08 season.
And after impressing, Ramsey secured a permanent switch to Arsenal in June 2008, although he did have loan stints with the Bluebirds and Nottingham Forest before becoming a pivotal figure for the Gunners.
He won three FA Cups and two Community Shields with the North Londoners before sealing a move to Juventus last summer.
However, Ramsey hit the headlines during his time at Arsenal after being the victim of a nasty challenge from Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross in 2010.
The Welshman suffered a double leg break, and Ramsey has admitted he initially feared he would never play football again after that incident at the Britannia Stadium.
