EPL head count gives Aaron big slice of comfort
Aaron Hickey admits he takes a head count of Scotland’s Premier League superstars and takes comfort for the missions ahead.
The Brentford youngster was a stand-out as he arrived on the scene early against Ukraine due to an injury to Nathan Patterson and provided a seamless transition at right-back.
But as another test awaits in Poland on Tuesday against the Ukrainians, Hickey insists he’ll have the likes of Scott McTominay, Kieran Tierney, John McGinn, Ryan Christie, Stuart Armstrong and Che Adams for help.
He said: “I was thinking to myself before the game, looking around, how many English Premier League players we have.
“There were eight in the starting XI and that’s good to see. We have a strong team right now and I feel we can be successful going forward. “Can we do something special? I think so.
“We have a few big-name players and plenty of boys who are playing at the highest level.
“But we work really well as a team and you can tell the boys enjoy it.”
Hickey also believes the 3-0 midweek dismantling of Ukraine was payback for a vocal Hampden support after the same opposition ended the World Cup play-off dream in June. He said: “It was a good night for us against Ukraine and we showed the fans that we were back. “We were delighted with the result and it was a lot better than June against them, that’s for sure. We had to repay the fans and show that we could beat Ukraine.
“Was there revenge in our minds? Yeah, a little bit.
“The game in the summer was tough for all of us and it didn’t go our way.
“It was a sad night but we had to come back for the game on Wednesday and perform – and we did that.”
Scotland’s embarrassment of riches at left-back with Tierney and skipper Andy Robertson is well documented and Hickey hopes his rivalry with Patterson can be just as potent in the months ahead.
He said: “Can Nathan and I be the new Robertson and Tierney? I hope so.
“We have two brilliant left-backs on the other side then Nathan has done really well at Everton.
“Are we rivals? No, I don’t see it that way.
“We are mates and speak to each other quite a lot.
“We push each other on, of course we do. We both want to play but we all want Scotland to be successful.”
It’s been a meteoric rise for the former Hearts defender, who landed a switch to Bologna before signing for Brentford in the summer, and he’s clearing each hurdle that comes his way.
He said: “Since going to Brentford I have been playing right-back and am getting used to it more and more.
“If the manager wants to play me there then I am happy to do that, I will play anywhere he wants.
“I think playing in Serie A helped me with my confidence stepping into the senior national team.
“I just wanted to come in and show people what I could do and hopefully I have done that recently.
“Playing in the English Premier League every week, against some of the best players in the world, can only help me develop as well.
“It is really intense down there but I am enjoying it.”