Scots_Wha_Hae

As a sort of culmination of the season post I have tried to put together a bit of an overview of the best young and emerging players who are currently or could be involved with the Scottish national teams. I have focused on players 21 and under and predominantly those playing at Premiership level in Scotland (with some exceptions) or those I consider to be ‘notable’ in other countries, most particularly in the English development leagues. I have likely missed loads but I hope this is a fairly comprehensive overview. It’s a little concerning if my perception of the keepers in particular is correct, as there is very little coming through. Otherwise it looks like we have a number of promising players in most positions – it will certainly be interesting to see the progress of these players over the coming season. Goalkeeper Cieran Slicker (20, Manchester City): Loaned to Rochdale in League 2 and didn’t play a single league minute – a bit of a disaster really. One many of us had high hopes might be a future international but on this showing he has a lot of work to do even to make a professional career. Needs to play football next year or he may fade to obscurity Defence Adam Devine (20, Rangers): A decent season with 6 Premiership appearances and loads of time on the bench. Has the talent to play more often so either a loan or more gametime must be the goal in 23/24 Adam Montgomery (20, Celtic): A full season for St Johnston at Premiership level has been great progress for 22/23. It will be interesting to see what Celtic do next season in terms of a further loan or to try to push him into the first team. Clearly good enough for this level he needs to keep the progress going and not stall through limited gametime next season Kerr Smith (18, Aston Villa): Transferred to Villa after getting some gametime at 16 for Dundee United and by all accounts has established himself well in their youth sides. Has played both U18 and PL2 level this year with good reports on each. Next season he will look to establish himself fully at PL2 level and perhaps even make the Villa squad for the cups. A loan looks unlikely at this stage with perhaps another year needed before he takes that leap. Lewis Neilson (20, Hearts): 25 career appearances at Premiership level at 5 appearances in Europe seems to be positive however minutes have largely dried up with his last significant gametime in October 22. Probably needs a loan in 23/24 if he is not yet Premiership standard, certainly needs more games Dylan Smith (16, Ross County): a breakthrough season for him at a very young age. 14 appearances in all competitions including 12 in the last 15 is brilliant. Hopefully continues to play next season and racks up a similar number of appearances. Dane Murray (19, Celtic): Often been talked about as a potential first team player at Celtic but doesn’t ever seem to have got going. I am not sure what the issue was this year, potentially injury, but he more or less played no football. Next year is huge for him, another year without notable experience and his chance may be gone Max Johnston (19, Motherwell): Smashed his way into the first team at Motherwell after Christmas following a second loan at Championship level. Has been very influential in the second half of the season at Premiership level, making 18 appearances, scoring 3 goals and making 3 assists. Strong rumours of a potential transfer with the well-trod path via Bologna in particular a mentioned option Josh Doig (21, Verona): 22 Serie A appearances (2 goals, 4 assists) is a brilliant return and great progression from his 50+ Premiership appearances from Hibs. He fell out the team a bit at the end of the season due to a combination of injury issues and a manager change. Speculation about another transfer but he could do with re-establishing himself in the Verona team first. Another good year in Serie A and he can start thinking about full Scotland honours – already not too far away after his squad appearances this year Liam Morrison (20, Bayern Munich): Surprised even those of us that keep tabs of youth players by making the bench for Bayern towards the end of the season. Despite the fact Bayern were undergoing somewhat of an injury crisis at the time, he was the player from the youth sides selected to take the bench place so the achievement is not to be underestimated. It has been rumoured a loan may be on the cards for 23/24 after a season at Regionalliga Bayern (a regional 4th tier league), it would certainly be good to see how he fares in men’s football Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen (18, Leeds): Caught the eye when he benched a few times for Leeds in the EPL although he didn’t make the pitch. A decent PL2 season with 14 appearances, next year in the Championship he should be looking towards the first team for the cups and perhaps benching in the league. A loan post-Christmas might be on the cards to a lower level, League 2 might suit Ibane Bowat (20, Fulham): On loan in the second half of this year in the Dutch second division for Den Bosch where he played almost every game he was available. A good experience and he should be seeking further men’s football next year at a higher level, maybe League 1 or Championship in England Leon King (19, Rangers): A tough job on his hands to break into the Rangers first team but of all their youth players he currently looks one of the most likely. After a great run of games in the first half of the season (largely, I think, due to injuries in the wider Rangers squad) he didn’t feature too much after Christmas. If Rangers go on a signing spree this summer he may be better to seek a loan to build his experience. He is too good for the Scottish Championship so either the Premiership up here or the Championship in England would be a good test for him. Has the talent and ability to break into the Scotland squad over the next 18 months – a good loan could secure that Harrison Ashby (21, Newcastle): Made a slightly surprising transfer from West Ham to Newcastle where he has featured rarely with a couple of European appearances the totality of his minutes this season. Has benched a few times in the EPL but is well behind Kieran Trippier for that slot. Another that could do with a loan – he showed at West Ham he is potentially an EPL quality player but he won’t be unless he plays some games Calvin Ramsay (19, Liverpool): An injury hit season that nevertheless showed great promise. Played in the Champions League against Napoli (well, for 3 minutes) as well as in the cups for a couple of games and benching in the EPL but eventually was confirmed to have a knee issue that required an operation and missed most of the post-Christmas season. Will be hoping to be in and around the squad for Liverpool next year as that is where Klopp has suggested he sits in the pecking order. With Trent latterly playing further forward he is the only recognised rightback in Liverpool’s squad – there may even be a place for him as well as Trent in a starting lineup. If not, cups, rotation and bench next season would be excellent progress. Another that any sort of run will see in the Scotland squad Midfield Josh Adam (19, Man City): may go out on loan if following similar process to likes of Fiorini. Belgian or Dutch leagues or lower league (League 1) England. We should hopefully see this coming season if his classy style at reserve league level translates to men's football as well as getting a view of his ultimate ceiling Connor Barron (20, Aberdeen): On the face of it another good season for Barron but in reality it seems to have been more of a step backwards. After his brilliant form in 21/22 he struggled a bit with injury, missing the first few months of the season as well as a chunk towards the end culminating in largely being dropped from the team. Needs to re-establish himself next year and focus on breaking into the team permanently after possibly having his head turned by transfer talk. Nevertheless, he is a 20 year old with 62 appearances to his name including 30 at Premiership level which is a good return Lyall Cameron (20, Dundee): 25+ games in the championship and approaching 100 career appearances he’ll be looking to show he is a Premiership standard player in 23/24 Ryan Duncan (19, Aberdeen): looking to cement himself in the Aberdeen midfield. Played 20 times this year with strong close to the season. More of the same needed next year to firmly establish his place Bailey Rice (16, Rangers): should be aiming for 5+ appearances after making his debut this year. Not ready for a loan or significant minutes beyond the Lowland League (assuming B teams continue) Lennon Miller (16, Motherwell): made good progress this season with 5 appearances across all competitions. Should be aiming for 15-20 appearances across all competitions next year with several starts, particularly in the league cup Ben Summers (18, Celtic): Managed a few minutes across two games at the end of the season after largely playing with Celtic’s B team. Needs to rack up decent gametime in 23/24 so a loan is probably his next step Dylan Reid (18, Crystal Palace): Played a couple of times for Saint Mirren before moving to Crystal Palace U18s at the start of the year. Has played well at that level and has also played at PL2 level albeit briefly. Will be hoping for more PL2 starts next season Lewis Fiorini (21, Manchester City): Unfortunately an injury disrupted season in the English Championship for Blackpool this season after a succession of very promising loans. Got back into the team at the tail end of the season but finished with only 13 appearances, probably less than half of what he hoped for. With around 100 appearances in men’s football, next season is a big deal for Fiorini. He is unlikely to break into the City team so either a good loan or a permanent transfer would suit him well. A Championship team with promotion aspirations would be a good fit. A good run and he may break into the Scotland squad as shown by his training with the top team this week. Hayden Hackney (20, Middlesbrough): An EPL player in waiting. Hugely successful season this year with 30+ Championship games including progression to the playoffs. Transfer rumours abound. Worryingly England qualified, although there has been no suggestion of a change of heart I hope he doesn’t choose to hedge his bets and wait it out for England as he is exceptionally classy. Another good Championship season should see him usurp Kenny McClean or possibly Ryan Jack for Scotland Alex Lowry (19, Rangers): A disappointing year which was heavily impacted by injury and personal tragedy. I hope to see him back around the squad in 23/24 and pushing for significant minutes as well as regular bench time. An aim of 10-15 appearances with a few starts would be realistic. Much like Leon King, may struggle for any significant role however so a loan to another Premiership or a League 1 / at a stretch lower Championship level team in England may be for the best. David Watson (18, Kilmarnock): Made a real impact at the tail end of the season, to me at least seemingly out of nowhere. 5 consecutive starts to finish the regular season and another 3 in the bottom 6. Overall 15 appearances in all competitions is a very good return. Needs to build on that next year with 25+ appearances. Matthew Craig (20, Spurs): Made a slightly surprising appearance for Spurs on the final day of the season after benching for the previous two. An ever-present and sometime captain of their PL2 squad he looks to be ready for first team football. It seems unlikely that will be at EPL level so a loan to a Championship team would be good progress for him Kristi Montgomery (19, Blackburn Rovers): Probably one of the more obscure names on the list but a mainstay in the Blackburn PL2 side so probably worthy of a mention. Only has a year left on his contract so it will be interesting to see if he manages to make any kind of progress in 23/24 Josh Mulligan (20, Dundee): 30+ games in the Championship, almost 100 career appearances including 10+ in the Premiership he’ll get to show if he has enough to be a Premiership level player in 23/24. If he does well expect a transfer to be forthcoming Marc Leonard (21, Brighton): Made a massive 45 appearances in League 2 on loan from Brighton playing in every game bar 1 of Northampton’s season. Another loan in 23/24 should show us how good he really is – League 1 or Championship would be excellent progress Attack Ryan One (16, Hamilton): Physically very mature so able to make a real impact in men's football now. 28 appearances in all competitions in 22/23, albeit in the Championship. Should be looking for the same again next year with more goals added to really kick on. A similar number of appearances and a decent goal return will likely see a transfer mooted IMO, either to the SP or to an English youth side. Kieron Bowie (20, Fulham): A good loan in League 2 where he played 37 times (scored 5, assisted 3). Should be looking for more loan minutes next season at a higher level, perhaps Championship but more likely League 1 Kieran Offord (19, St Mirren): 26 appearances and 4 goals in all competitions split across League 1 in the first half of the season (13 appearances 4 goals) and the Premiership (9 appearances, 0 goals) in the second half of the season. His next step is to make 15+ appearances in the Premiership and to add some goals to his game at that level Rory MacLeod (17, Dundee United): 18 appearances this season was a good return for his age, especially since they have all been made in the second half of the season. Will be expected to play more in the Championship and to add goals to his game - might prove to be a good level for him to become United's starting centre forward, although rumours of a transfer to English youth football continue to abound Ben Doak (17, Liverpool): Possibly the most exciting prospect of my lifetime. He had a fantastic last 18 months, playing (a small number of) minutes for Celtic before transferring to Liverpool and exceeding all expectations by first benching and then playing for the Liverpool first team. Had a frustrating end to the season with a bad brain injury but Liverpool seem to expect big things of him. A good season next year will be minutes in the cups (FA and EFL) as well as some EPL minutes. If he can hit double figures for match appearances that will be very good going – given how far he has exceeded expectations to date he may do better than even that. Any kind of consistent run for Liverpool will see him into the Scotland squad as we simply have no other player with his skillset Dire Mebude (19, Manchester City): Ripped it up in the PL2 for City scoring 11 goals and making 13 assists. Hugely promising player but also hugely unlikely to make a first team appearance in the exceptional City first team. Perhaps a loan, although a permanent transfer to PSV has been rumoured. If he makes a first team impact at a decent level he should be fast tracked to the Scotland first team as again he offers a skillset we do not currently have in the squad Ethan Laidlaw (18, Hibs): I haven’t included many Scotland-based players yet to make an impact on the adult game but Laidlaw is too good to miss out. Although he failed to make a senior minute, he did bench for Hibs several times in 2023. Rumours surrounding a transfer to English youth football are not going away so he may move before playing professionally in Scotland. Needs adult football next season if he doesn’t move to England Rory Wilson (17, Aston Villa): Another of the players on the list around which there is much excitement. Has settled well in England and scored goals at every level he has faced to date (8 in 9 at U18 level and 4 in 7 at PL2 level). Probably a little green for a loan just yet so a season predominantly in PL2 with a continuation of his good goalscoring form plus an appearance or two in the cups would be a good outcome for 23/24. He is extremely well regarded so much like Doak, any kind of run in and about a decent level of first team football may see him elevated to the Scotland full squad, although I do not expect that to happen in 23/24

There was always a plan to have some of the u21s train with the full squad, hard to say if this is that or something else:

This is the only potential change I can see (and I would say it is probably quite unlikely) - McTominay further forward playing a similar role to McGinn and Gilmour sitting next to McGregor. Otherwise, as others have noted, McGregor is an absolute stick on to start and we will play a back 3 / 5. I could see the logic in us changing to a 4 vs Georgia but I don't think he'll do it - he's shown before he likes to spend his preparation time in a double header working on one formation and then he will stick to it regardless of whether one team is 'weaker'. So, most likely we will see the team suggested by runningtings and others with only the centrebacks to be decided. We will then probably see the same formation against Georgia but perhaps a small amount of rotation with Gilmour starting and possibly Armstrong over Christie.

No but that’s the point surely. Watford (or any English team at or above the Championship) can offer better wages, better facilities, better coaches, better youth football level, higher quality team mates, better everything really. The one thing a team like Hibs can offer is first team football and the prestige, career progression and status that goes with it. If they don’t offer that then why bother staying, the offer down south is far more compelling.

Another that you'd think if his club (Hibs on this occasion) had shown him any kind of first team pathway he would have perhaps decided to stay. He was exceptional in the Uefa Youth League and his reward was what exactly? The clubs are giving it 'wa wa wa the rich EPL are stealing our players' but he's 18 and one of their best youth prospects and they haven't given him any kind of chance at all. Of course he is going to leave.

Turnbull is a very good player, it's disappointing to see him languishing on the bench for Celtic. I hope he can secure at least a loan if not a transfer for the good of his career. Not quite good enough to start for them but too good to be a reserve player is a tough place to be.

Aye, played for the 21s and was rotten, albeit under Gemmil so we can perhaps give him the benefit of the doubt.

It is definitely one of the strongest squads I can remember, especially given the likes of Ramsay, Doig, Hickey, Lowry, Anderson, Devine, Dane Murray and even Rory Wilson could be in the squad.

Going by LiveScore, Patterson seems to be listed today as RCB in a back 3. I’m not aware of him ever playing CB, could be interesting…

I don't get it, don't City also play with inverted fullbacks?

Being realistic, 3 top players from a single squad at this level is brilliant for us if we can do it consistently. We are never going to have mega-depth like France do but we don’t need to. Produce 3 top players a year for a decade and you have a top squad (assuming they aren’t all fullbacks!).

Do they all look completely out of place or are some of them of a similar level to the French? Any particular stand outs? The French are reigning champions so no disgrace to be beaten by them.

Prediction: Lasts less than 3 months before being fired, the SFA still haven't managed to get their act together and hire a replacement, comes straight back into the job. 😬

It’s the sign of an excellent player to have a really tough time against a specific opponent and to be able to solve the problem for next time they play.

To be perfectly frank, I saw him play for the u21s and I thought he was shite - like ‘may not even make it as a professional’ level of shite. It just goes to show that Scot Gemmill could probably ruin peak Messi as clearly any player benching for Bayern Munich (regardless of injury worries) will not be shite.

Liam Morrison appears to be on the bench for Bayern today!

I wouldn’t agree with that. Yes, there have been players at big epl clubs but typically they have been anglos rather than transfers from Scottish clubs. The number moving down and the increased importance of them to their respective teams seems, anecdotally at least, higher than previously. The only really high profile youth transfer I can recall outside of recent years was Feruz. I expect very few of the current hyped players will make it either tbh, but Doak will, Hickey already has, Gilmour will/has and I expect a few others to have good top 5 league careers (Wilson, Josh Adam, Mebude, Kerr currently the most likely although potentially none will make it). Even if only the first 3 make it that is far beyond anything seen for the last 20 years in terms of transferred youth players where as I say I struggle to name any beyond Feruz who were high profile transfers. The likes of Hackney, Fiorini etc. are anglos so don’t count in this context). No doubt you are about to reel off 20+ and make me look a pillock but my perception is that things have changed.

The ones scoffing are a bit odd. He's only 20 and he has 70 odd games across two top 5 leagues. There are very very few players who are at that level of quality and experience at his age - obviously top clubs are looking at him.

Genuine question, why do you think that? He’s played over 170 games in Scotland, the majority at championship level, and has scored 36 goals; that’s a pretty decent sample to say he is unlikely to ‘smash the shit out of this league’’. There is a constant tendency to devalue our own league against the English Championship but the Championship is full of utter cloggers and is insanely overhyped. Dykes is a great player for us but I don’t see him ever being a prolific striker, it’s not his game and to be frank he’s not particularly good in the grand scheme of things. I also don’t buy the instant improvement line we get for players excelling in England either, it’s just a lazy excuse to explain why so many players from our shit farmers league smash the shit out of their leagues.

This is what we want though, right. A nice settled squad that only changes when someone comes along that is clearly better than what we have. One at a time guys get phased out, but remain available if we have injuries or whatever. Jack will likely retire either after qualifying for Germany (if we fail) or after the tournament if we go. Hackney is in prime position for his spot at the moment but I would say is unlikely to take it before then unless he moves to and establishes himself at a decent EPL club. Getting promoted and playing the EPL (well) will also possibly see a route to the squad but I don’t think that’s an automatic qualifying criteria for us any longer.

Correct, and even if they played their youth team from now until the end of the season they'd still have a shocking record (as do they all).

Roy Keane is a parody of himself - his opinions are meant to incite and nothing more. He has the critical thinking capacity of a small child but in his own head he is some kind of oracle. He is unable to see his own hypocrisy or recognise his own failings. He has particularly reacted badly to this situation because it was a Liverpool player and he is enough of a child that that actually matters to him and his opinion of the situation. I'd imagine he also doesn't like that Robertson isn't frightened of him like so many are and were. That being said, Robertson was indeed a baby about the whole incident, so broken clocks and all that 😄

I think its absolutely fair to say that playing in an at best middling MLS team is inferior to playing for Celtic and Rangers given the European exposure they have. Of course the fact the SP is our top competition means that we have a bias toward picking players from it. If we had players at similar level European clubs in places like the Scandanavian leagues or maybe Greece/Turkey then we would probably be less likely to pick them unless they were exceptional. I think that's natural. Anyway, all of that is moot because the core point was if Gauld wants to play for Scotland he has to show he can cut it in a league that Clarke rates, and that isn't the MLS.

I think this is the key point. If he wants to play for Scotland it has been abundantly clear for some time that he will have to play in a better league. He may be good enough, its hard to say, because he is playing at a level that is clearly lower than all our other midfield players (you might argue over McLean). If he wants to play for Scotland then pick up the phone and take up one of those offers he apparently had from La Liga or the Bundesliga before he decided to go to Canda.

That's fair enough on a home and away basis, but it does make it seem like our win at home was in some way an 'easier' match than Georgia away. If you rank all games I would say it is something like (from hardest to easiest): 1. Spain away 2. Spain home 3. Norway (Scotland) away 4. Georgia away 5. Norway (Scotland) home 6. Georgia home 7 Cyprus away 8 Cyprus home We've played match 2 and 8. Norway have played match 1 and 4. Yes, theirs are obviously both tough but we have achieved a result in match 2 which nobody expected. You would usually assume you have to win matches 6-8 and win one and draw one of 3-5 to secure second place. I think Norway away is massive for us - it's a match you wouldn't expect to get a result out of being the hardest of those you might. Georgia home though, we have to win that. All that bollocks to say, we are 3 points ahead of where we would expect to be and that is obviously good!