CAMPBELL HAPPY TO BE HORRIBLE IF IT HELPS SCOTS INFLICT PAIN ON ENGLAND
MARK WALKER
ALLAN CAMPBELL relishes being Scotland’s Mr Horrible — and can’t wait to get involved in a battle with England in the Toulon Tournament semi-final tomorrow. The Scots face the Auld Enemy in Aubagne after topping their qualifying group, dispatching hosts France en route. While the likes of captain Oliver Burke and Chelsea starlet Billy Gilmour have captured the headlines, Motherwell midfield battler Campbell has arguably been Scotland’s best player in the three games against Togo, France and South Korea. The 19-year-old has been a consistent bundle of energy at the end of a long, hard season and is now looking forward to going head-to-head with full England international Lewis Cook of Bournemouth and Everton’s Tom Davies in a fascinating showdown. ‘I just think that’s my sort of game, getting stuck in, getting in about it,’ said Campbell. ‘If I’ve got a chance to get in about somebody then I’m going to do it. ‘You need to be horrible for a team to play against. We want to try to make the game as horrible for them as we can in the hope we can upset them. ‘You need to disrupt their play. If that means getting in about them, keeping the ball off them, whatever way we can win that game, we’ll go out and try to do it. ‘I’ve always been a midfielder since I started. I just liked being in the heart of things and getting on the ball.
‘I think if we set the game plan like we’ve done through the tournament so far then we’ll have a great chance. It’ll set us up well for going forward because the pace we’ve got is brilliant. ‘Oliver Burke, as you saw with his goal the other day, is unbelievable. If we structure ourselves at the back solidly, that gives us a platform for going forwards. ‘We’ve come here and done well. In the France game, I think everyone came together and everything worked. ‘It was brilliant. To get the result against South Korea to seal top place and get into the semis was brilliant. If we take every part of those games into Wednesday, I’m sure we’ll do well.’ Campbell enjoyed his tussle with Scott Brown in the recent Scottish Cup final defeat to Celtic and the Parkhead skipper is one of the players the central midfield terrier looks up to. ‘He’s done amazingly well in the Scottish game and I’d like that in my career,’ he said. ‘Every time I come up against the better players in the league, I want to try and see how far away I am from them and try to impose myself on them. ‘The guys I look up to are Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard — players like that. ‘If I want to try to improve my attacking play, I will watch midfielders who like to get forward more. I like to get a bit of knowledge on the things they do and add it to my game. ‘I just think if I prepare myself the way I can, do what the manager asks and give 100 per cent then I’ve given myself a good chance of doing well in the game.’ Campbell has formed an impressive partnership with Gilmour in the engine room and has been hugely impressed with the 16-year-old Chelsea playmaker. ‘He’s a great wee player,’ he said. ‘I think he’s brilliant. He’s definitely one to look out for in the future. He’s a great lad and I’m sure he’ll do well. ‘The Toulon Tournament has been a good experience. I’ve been grateful to play. Hopefully, I’ve done all right.’