I’ve known Robbo for years .. he was my first pick on Football Manager

Vincent Kompany admits he and Andy Robertson have a long history together – both in real life and the virtual world.

The Belgium stopper, 32, has revealed he met the future Scotland skipper when Robbo was a fresh-faced kid handing out match programmes at Hampden five years ago. And Kompany insists he knew the Liverpool full-back would be a superstar while he was still at Dundee United - because he signed him in computer game Football Manager. The Manchester City captain said: “I knew of Andrew when he played in Scotland before he joined Hull. I play Football Manager so that’s why. “Good left-backs are hard to come by so I gambled and signed him up in the game.” Kompany and Robertson went head to head at Hampden on Friday in Scotland’s painful 4-0 rout at the hands of Belgium.

But the stopper remembers meeting Robbo at the National Stadium back in 2013 when the then Queen’s Park youngster was working for the SFA on matchdays to supplement his income.

Injury restricted the Belgian to watching that clash between his side and Scotland from the stands but he said: “I do remember meeting Andrew here.

“A few people have mentioned it over the years and it stuck with me. Sometimes you see people and you remember their face

and the moment. I didn’t get a chance to speak to him after this game because I went off at half-time and he played the full game. Most of us in football come from humble backgrounds so it’s nice to see him doing well at a high level with Liverpool. “Obviously he’s captaining Scotland now too so he has come a long way. “If you look at every club you’ll see young guys coming through. Andrew’s work rate and desire makes his development a natural progression, not a surprise.” Kompany is not the only Belgium player with a Scottish connection. Winger Hans Vanaken says he can’t wait to tap into Shaun Maloney’s international experience after the former Celtic attacker was appointed to Roberto Martinez’s backroom staff. Vanaken made his international debut at Hampden and is excited at the prospect of working with the Scot. The Club Brugge star said: “Shaun’s a great coach but he was also a great player. Players like me can learn a lot from him because he played lots of games for really good teams. He has so much experience and can pass on some tips to help me play better.”

Vanaken revealed Maloney gave Belgium a blueprint of how to run riot at Hampden.

He said: “Shaun knows a lot about Scotland so we were well informed before the game about how they play and how we should play against them. This is my first week in the national camp so I’m looking forward to working with him throughout the week.”

Vanaken replaced Eden Hazard and was a real handful for Alex McLeish’s defence.

The 26-year-old knows he’ll need to continue to improve to keep his place.

He added: “We have a great coaching staff and players here. I’m already having fun and I’m learning a lot.

“We did well to beat Scotland as easily as we did. This was the perfect game to prepare us for Tuesday when we play Iceland in the Nations League.

“I’m looking forward to playing again now.”