Robin Van Persie Heartbreak over Failed Rangers Switch

Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie has revealed the pain of seeing his dreams of a teenage move to Rangers fall apart.

The flying Dutchman, who has Gunners fans worried as he continues to stall over signing a new contract, was approached by former Ibrox boss Dick Advocaat when he was 18.

But despite Van Persie being “desperate” to join the Glasgow giants, the move collapsed.

“There was some interest from Rangers when I was at Feyenoord,” Van Persie said.

“The problem for me was they didn't come in and make an offer. I was quite interested because I really wanted to leave my club.

“Rangers are massive, like Celtic. I speak to Glenn Loovens and he tells me lots of stories about the stadium and Scotland itself.

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“My European debut was against Rangers at Ibrox and that was a fantastic moment. When I heard about their interest, I sat by the phone hoping it would ring.

“I was in a difficult situation at my club and desperate to leave. Advocaat told me he needed to sell some players before he could buy. That's why it dragged on and did not happen.”

Van Persie will show Rangers fans what they missed when Holland take on Scotland this weekend.

The Gunners’ top-scorer will be a major threat to George Burley’s injury-hit side in the Amsterdam Arena tomorrow night.

Though confident of victory, he stressed that Scotland would be no push-over for the Group Nine runaway leaders.

“We can make a massive step towards reaching the World Cup, but so could Scotland. We are both good sides so, even if they lose, they should not worry. I rate them higher than the other teams.”

( Daniel Igra / Mirror )