ANDY Robertson said last night that leading Scotland to the Euro 2020 finals would be every bit as special as holding the Champions League trophy aloft. The Scotland captain became the first native of this country to triumph in the continent’s biggest club game for 22 years when he helped Liverpool to triumph against Tottenham Hotspur in Madrid on Saturday night but he has no intention of resting on his laurels.
Not only does he intend to keep racking up the honours under Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, he would dearly love to return the Scotland’s men’s team to prominence at international level after a 22-year-exile from the major finals. Already with a Euro 2020 semi-final play-off in the back pocket, that process begins in earnest under new manager Steve Clarke against Cyprus tonight.
“Once you get a feeling for trophies and going far in European tournaments with your club then you want to replicate that with your country,” said Robertson. “Us qualifying for a major tournament would be a huge step in that direction but we know how hard that will be and what’s required to make it a reality.
“It does make me more determined. On hundred per cent. I want more of the feelings that I had on Saturday.
“I want that success at club level more with Liverpool - it is not just like we have won the big cup and let’s all pack it in now. I want to win more trophies for Liverpool and bring success to Scotland too. To do that, we need to go again, we’ve got a new start now and we need to qualify for the Euros because that would be AS special, I feel
“I can’t tell you how we’ll feel until we do it but hopefully you’re asking me next year when we have completed that qualification. We thought we knew what winning the Champions League would feel like before but having actually done it, the feelings are far better than I could ever have imagined.
“Sitting here when qualification has not yet happened, I can say it would be a very proud moment and up there with my biggest achievements to date but I’ll be in a better place to answer that when hopefully it happens. I know from the lads back in Liverpool that it is a huge honour. It’s something I want to do but we need to now take steps towards it. Right now I can only keep that thought in my head to drive us forward.”
Mobbed on an open top bus tour around Liverpool, it has been a bewildering few days for the 25-year-old, but there was never a thought in his mind about not reporting for action under his new manager on Tuesday. For the record his clubmates Virgil van Dijk and Georginho Wijnaldum played the full 120 minutes against England on Thursdy. “My full focus was on joining up with the Scotland squad and I wanted to get up as quickly as I could so I arrived on Tuesday,” he said. “It’s been an incredible week but it’s all about trying to top it off now. The motivation is the same as all the lads at Liverpool - we want to play as many games and playing for your country is still the biggest honour. It’s irrelevant what we’ve won and what we’ve done, it’s still a huge honour for me to lead the team out for these games.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here