Early goals see young Scots through to semi v England

sCotlAND u21 2 soutH koreA u21 1

Scot Gemmill praised his Scottish starlets after they eased into the Toulon Tournament semi-finals following two brilliant goals from skipper Oliver Burke and Chelsea’s Billy Gilmour, who became the youngest ever scorer for Scotland U-21s.

They now face England on Wednesday.

The Scots needed to beat South Korea and hope Togo wouldn’t defeat France to qualify for the last four for the second year in a row.

The Scots had a dream start when they took the lead after just 84 seconds. Rangers’ Glenn Middleton pinged the ball across goal to Gilmour, and he curled a superb effort into the corner of the net.

It got even better for the Scots when they doubled their advantage in the eighth minute with a simply incredible goal from Burke. He powered his way through, shrugging off challenge after challenge, before racing to get to the ball before the onrushing keeper and clipped a delightful finish into the net.

On 82 minutes, the Koreans clawed themselves back into the game when Kangin Lee curled in a 25-yard free-kick.

Gemmill said: “It’s very exciting to look forward to the occasion. It’s going to be the same again. This year, we have an extra day’s rest. Last year, I can remember really feeling that was a factor.

“We are going to need every ounce of energy to really find a way to win. That extra day could be the difference.

“We’re really proud of the players. It’s great justification to Malky Mackay for finding the budget to get us here because it costs a lot of money. It’s not a free invitation. There is a big responsibility to do well.”