A die-hard Aberdeen season ticket holder will have a permanent reminder to Christian Ramirez’s fast start with the Dons – after fulfilling a bet to get a tattoo inspired by the striker if he scored 15 goals.
Philip Mair made the dare when the American forward was just rumoured to be swapping Houston for Pittodrie.
Following a lifetime of supporting the Dons, and with the turmoil of appointing a new manager in the summer, the 22-year-old thought he was on safe ground giving Ramirez a 15-goal target.
After the LA-born striker and countless others picked up on the bet on Twitter, Philip knew there was no way out if the forward hit the ground running.
So, after Ramirez netted against Motherwell in the Scottish Cup to reach the magic 15 – he knew he had to make good on his word.
‘He better keep scoring now’
With four goals in his first four games, Philip knew he was immediately in trouble as Ramirez raced towards the target.
Messages started flying in from friends reminding the council worker of the commitment he made.
Kept your word, class you from haha 🙏🏽🤦🏽♂️😂, need to get you a signed top from myself and the team 💯💪🏽 https://t.co/NDi8uDpAMr
— Christian Ramirez (@Chris_Ramirez17) February 19, 2022
And when Ramirez netted against Motherwell in the Scottish Cup, in what turned out to be Stephen Glass’ last game in charge – there was no way out.
Philip said: “I realised quickly I set the target a bit low as he kept on getting closer and closer. Lots of people were messaging me on the original tweet.
“I was actually on a weekend away in Dublin when he reached it. I switched my phone on after the flight and it started going absolutely mental.
“With the service he’s getting now I’m hoping he might get into the high 20s. He better keep scoring now.”
Superman tattoo to honour Ramirez
Christian Ramirez has long been known as superman, regularly unveiling a t-shirt honouring the superhero after scoring in the US.
Philip quickly knew the CR9 motif designed by Aberdeen graphic designer Dolly Digital would be perfect to fulfil his Ramirez tattoo bet.
Meanwhile, the striker himself has promised the Dons season ticket holder a signed shirt from the team to thank the Red Army member for his support.
So after getting permission to use the logo, Philip visited Union Street tattoo parlour Good Grief to make good on his word.
He said: “I think I’ve got to learn from my own stupidity. Maybe if we win the Scottish Cup or something, which we’ve never done in my lifetime, I’ll get a tattoo.
“Until that comes, I’ll maybe stay away from making any more claims. People can’t say I’m not a man of my word though.”
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