Eight goals in last week of season? Let’s pray Kane’s in holiday mode SAYS
But he reckons anyone hoping the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli will dial it back after putting their feet up for the past fortnight is dreaming. The full-back – who looks set to keep his own Premier League status with a mega-money move to Liverpool following City’s relegation – watched the pair run riot for Tottenham in a seven-goal final-day rout. The two are expected to form the tip of the England spear alongside Raheem Sterling and Adam Lallana as Gareth Southgate brings his Group F table-toppers north to Hampden. And Robertson said: “They’ll still be right up for this. Anyone hoping otherwise is clutching at straws. “For any person who plays for their country, it’s not an inconvenience – especially when you are playing your rivals in a game like this. “There’s no way England will think like that. They’re going well in the group and will probably want to come through this whole campaign unscathed. “But we have to hope the best England team doesn’t show up on the day and the best Scotland team does. If the best Scotland team does show up then we’re capable of beating anyone.” Robertson is well aware of what England’s best looks like, however. Kane had already bagged a hat-trick – his second in two games after putting four past Leicester – by the time the Scot was introduced 73 minutes in at the KCOM Stadium. The 23-year-old said: “In the first half they were frightening, the way they moved forward and took their chances. It would have been great to watch as a neutral but when it’s happening to your team it’s never nice. “You look at Kane, the way he played in that game, the fact he scored eight goals in the last week of the season, he’s obviously bang in form and someone we need to be wary of. “But we need to be wary of all of them really. It’s tough – England have world-class players and guys who play at Champions League level every week. That’s something we don’t really have apart from the Celtic boys. “They compete at the highest level all the time but we still have to believe all 11 of us can show up and get a positive result.” Potentially six of that 11 could come from Celtic. That was the mix used to earn the late 1-0 success against Slovenia in March and it might not be far wrong again this time. If that is the team Gordon Strachan chooses, Robertson insists it’s one that will have England’s respect. He said: “To go unbeaten for so long deserves respect, no matter what team does it and where.
“It was a great achievement for Celtic to win the Treble and all their footballers will respect that.”
Robertson earned some of his own the last time the two sides met in Scotland, even if his only goal in dark blue was little more than a consolation.
Playing a sweet one-two with Johnny Russell, his finish past Fraser Forster was one of the few shining lights in a 3-1 defeat at Celtic Park in 2014. He said: “It was the biggest moment of my life. But when I spoke after it, my first thought was it was a defeat. I do take pride in what has been my first and only goal for my country.
“I’d much rather it came in different circumstances but I do like looking back on it. We got a few days off after it and I remember staying in Scotland, being around my family and hearing all the publicity around it.
“When I got back to Hull the boys were just happy England had won but annoyed I had scored against them.
“At least I had that over them. But they had the result, which was the most important thing.”
Robertson has never known Scotland success over England at Hampden with his earliest memory, as a five-year-old, Paul Scholes’ double dampening the family party organised for the big day in the Euro 2000 playoffs. But he believes the side go into this one with renewed optimism after Chris Martin’s finish sank Slovenia.
He said: “Before that one we had the disappointments against Slovakia and not getting the win over Lithuania.
“And Wembley was a disappointment in the end but a good performance. If we had taken our chances it might have been a different score.
“That was maybe shown with the attendance at Hampden – we usually sell it out. There were a lot of empty seats that night but against Slovenia we controlled the game and managed to get the three points, even if it was a wee bit later than we’d have wanted.
“And now we are hoping the fans come back to this game and there’s maybe a bit more belief this time.”