The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Gemmill’s huge confidence in emerging talent as he predicts good times ahead
Scotland Under-21s head coach Scot Gemmill is excited about the future of the national team as he prepares to close another campaign.
Scotland cannot qualify for the European Championship finals ahead of their final encounter against group winners England, but they enjoyed two memorable wins over Holland and saw a raft of players win full caps – John Souttar, Scott McKenna, Lewis Morgan, Oli McBurnie and Chris Cadden.
And Gemmill believes there could be successful times ahead.
“I’m a huge supporter of the younger players,” he said.
“With working with the under-17s, we qualified for four major finals and that’s with four separate sets of players – players born in ’97, ’98, ’99 and 2000.
“All those players have yet to come to the under-21s. A few of those are lucky enough to be involved – Glenn Middleton, Elliott Watt, Billy Gilmour is actually from 2001. But those players that achieved those performances and got to European championships four years in a row are all ready to push towards under-21 level.
“So there’s a real crop of young players bubbling up under the surface ready to come through, and that’s just with the players I worked with.
“You can go even further with the ones (Scotland Under-17 coach) Brian McLaughlin is currently working with. So definitely huge confidence in who is coming.”
Gemmill is sure tonight’s Tynecastle encounter will be keenly-fought.
“That sense of occasion, every time these particular countries play, is always there,” the former Scotland midfielder said.
“I’ve been lucky enough to experience it at under-15s, under-16s, under-17s, and the full squad is obviously the one, but even at the younger age groups, there is a sense of occasion every time they play.
Three Lions boss Aidy Boothroyd meanwhile has challenged his side to complete the job in Edinburgh and continue their unbeaten record.
A 7-0 thumping of Andorra last Thursday ensured they will top Group Four ahead of next year’s tournament in Italy and San Marino.
England Under-21s have now qualified for seven straight tournaments and are unbeaten in 34 qualification games – a run Boothroyd is keen to extend.
He said: “If you’re doing well then people tell you records like that which is great, it’s important I just keep doing my bit and make sure the players are right so we can keep it going.
“Qualifying for tournaments is what we’re all about and it helps the players grow and gives them opportunities.
“We want to finish on a high, we want to make sure we play and perform well.
“Scotland are always difficult opponents. We have played them a few times recently – in Toulon (a 3-1 win), in Middlesbrough (a 3-1 victory) and I don’t expect anything other than a partisan atmosphere for us.
“It’s what the players want, local derbies, games where there is expectation.”
West Brom’s Leicester loanee Harvey Barnes and Aston Villa’s on-loan Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham are likely to feature with Boothroyd ready to make changes for the match.
Reiss Nelson and Dominic Solanke are also pushing to start after scoring as second-half substitutes in Chesterfield on Thursday.
“There will be a few players who will get a chance. Harvey has been exceptional, I’ve been really impressed with him,” Boothroyd added.
“I’ll mix it up again and as we get into November, now we know we have qualified, in the next month to six weeks there will be a lot of organising and making sure we’re ready for Italy.”