BEST YOUNG SCOTLAND PLAYERS
SOME OF SCOTLAND'S MOST INTERESTING EMERGING TALENTS
After a decade or so in the wilderness, Scottish football is building back to becoming a stronger force on the international scene. It has been powered by an ever-improving talent development programme. Here are a few profiles of some of their emerging generations. Each cover their backgrounds, styles, strengths and weaknesses.
You can find more in-depth player reports in the Scouted Football Handbook, our quarterly magazine in which we profile 25 of the world’s best up-and-coming talents, with additional original features and exclusive interviews included.
LAST UPDATED: APRIL 14, 2022
Billy Gilmour
DATE OF BIRTH
11/06/2001
positions
Number 6
CLUB
Chelsea
NATIONAL TEAM
Seniors
HEIGHT
1.70 metres
PREFERRED FOOT
Right
STRENGTHS
- Strong technical fundamentals
- Receives and releases ball quickly
- Plays with composure and maturity
WEAKNESSES
- Lacks top-level physicality
- Relatively one-paced mobility
background
Billy Gilmour rose to premature prominence at 15 years old, when Chelsea invested a seven-figure fee to sign him from Rangers. Before that, he had built up a prodigious reputation at the Glasgow club, playing multiple age groups up and been touted for first-team debuts.
Dropping out of the limelight in a fully-stocked academy at Chelsea may have been the best step for him, ironically. It enabled him to develop through the age groups, starting with the under-18s before progressing to the under-23s.
Frank Lampard gave him his first-team debut during the 2019/20 season. After a season around the senior side, Gilmour left on loan to Norwich City in the Premier League for the 2021/22 season.
STYLE OF PLAY
At youth level, Gilmour was often undersized relative to his opposition. He’s a diminutive figure at the base of midfield but makes up for it with a nice poise and decent mobility.
His style is very much that of a deep-lying passer. Gilmour is a number six that organises the game from deep; he constantly moves to receive the ball in early phases of build-up and is effective and efficient at facilitating those sequences. He’s a technical and intelligent player, always scanning space and taking the ball with positive touches and intentions. His ability to understand space enables him to play with speed, rarely taking more than a couple of touches to receive and release the ball.
Gilmour lacks the physicality and athleticism (right now) to really compete in the Premier League. His smaller size and relatively one-paced mobility means he can struggle against bigger, more athletic opponents.
Aaron Hickey
DATE OF BIRTH
10/06/2002
positions
Left-back
CLUB
Bologna FC
NATIONAL TEAM
Seniors
HEIGHT
1.85 metres
PREFERRED FOOT
Left
STRENGTHS
- Ball-carrying
- Range of passing
- Comfortable on weaker right foot
WEAKNESSES
- Lacks high-level physicality
- Defending in transition
background
Aaron Hickey is plotting his own path as a Scottish expatriate in Italy. The teenage full-back left Edinburgh-based Heart of Midlothian for Bologna following a breakout season in the Scottish Premiership and has acclimatised to a new way of life in Serie A. Repeatedly posed with sink-or-swim scenarios, Hickey – now a full international – has demonstrated his top-level ability and adds depth to an ever-growing pool of Scottish full-backs.
STYLE OF PLAY
Whilst not possessing an athletic, wing-back’s physique per se, Hickey is a solid dribbler and competitor for his age and relative experience. Game-by-game, the young Scot posts good tackling and ball-carrying numbers, aided by his comfort with both feet. Hickey’s two-footedness may be overplayed at times, as he is primarily a left-sided player, but the full-back has no issue going inside or down the flank.
Hickey’s passing range is another area in which his ability belies his age; he can break lines, seek out targets in final third when playing more advanced and effectively contribute to early build-up phases. This is assisted by Bologna’s change in formation midway through the 2021-22 season, which now sees Hickey operating as a wing-back, in front of three more robust central defenders.
Defensively, Hickey’s fundamentals are strong however in the event of defensive transitions, he can at times be caught up-field or separated from teammates. Unlike fellow Scottish left-back Kieran Tierney who has capably doubled as a left-sided centre-back, Hickey’s positional versatility lends itself to a more advanced left-sided role. Meanwhile his passing range and physical attributes suggests a role in a double-pivot would not be beyond him in future.
There are areas for improvement, as mentioned during moments of transition, positioning himself more securely or choreographing his body-shape more intelligently to guard against more explosive dribblers. Above all, Hickey is workmanlike and looks to play forward at every appropriate juncture.
Alex Lowry
DATE OF BIRTH
23/06/2003
positions
Attacking midfielder
CLUB
Rangers
NATIONAL TEAM
Under-19s
HEIGHT
1.85 metres
PREFERRED FOOT
Right
STRENGTHS
- Ball-carrying and dribbling abilities
- High-volume goalscorer from wide
- Ball-striking techniques
WEAKNESSES
- Tries too much/hard at times
- Creative passing in attack
background
While the Scottish national team has undoubtedly produced some quality in defence and midfield in recent times, their attacking still looks a bit shallow. But soon there will be a lot of expectation placed on the shoulders of Rangers prodigy Alex Lowry to step up and add to his nation’s range of attacking options as he progresses through the youth ranks at Rangers and stands on the precipice of routine senior selection.
STYLE OF PLAY
Lowry is tall and strong for a winger, but is clearly very technically gifted. He can get past players comfortably one-on-one, but he also possesses good speed to attack spaces that open up in transition.
His performance in an important UEFA Youth League match Rangers lost to Sevilla highlighted exactly the kind of player he is, as he attempted to put his team on his back as they were thoroughly outplayed. He could definitely be accused of trying a little bit too hard at times and subsequently over-playing things, but with the way the game was being played with Rangers often pegged into their own half, it was understandable. Lowry’s ball carrying was one of Rangers’ few outlets out of Sevilla’s aggressive defensive line.
This meant he was the one playing runners through, when ideally, he should be the player making the runs. And this is where he tended to force play and give away possession when Rangers desperately needed to try to control the speed of the game.
It isn’t too surprising to see he has played senior team minutes though (he scored and was named man of the match on debut in a cup game against Stirling Albion), he does not look far away from the step up to that level in Scotland. He looks a senior level athlete to match with the top level technical quality that should easily be compatible with the Scottish Premiership.
Nathan Patterson
DATE OF BIRTH
16/10/2001
positions
Right-back
CLUB
Everton
NATIONAL TEAM
Seniors
HEIGHT
1.89 metres
PREFERRED FOOT
Right
STRENGTHS
- Identifying and attacking space
- Effectiveness in build-up
- Dynamic straight-line speed
WEAKNESSES
- Crossing
- Lacks significant senior minutes
background
Nathan Patterson entered Rangers’ youth system as an eight-year-old, spending 12 years at the Glasgow club before exiting in a move worth a reported £12.5 million in January 2022. 200 miles down the M6 was to be Patterson’s new home: Everton, where his addition appears a succession plan of sorts for veteran full-back Séamus Coleman. While his first months on Merseyside have yielded few appearances, the 20-year-old has already amassed several caps for Scotland and looks set to become a stalwart of Steve Clarke’s senior side moving forward, despite not having shaken his status as an understudy at Rangers or Everton to date.
STYLE OF PLAY
Patterson is a marauding, industrious full-back who uses his height and gait to stretch defences, use the full width of the pitch and burst past flat-footed opponents. The youngster is an exponent of the ‘give-and-go’, utilising a teammate with their back to goal to fire passes into, before rounding an obstacle and once again receiving the ball with an entire flank to surge into.
The ex-Rangers defender can squeeze through gaps despite his size, is purposeful with his ball-carrying and despite occasionally finding himself guilty of dribbling with his head down, is already adept at progressing play several yards with the ball at his feet.
Patterson likes to attack space and his primary task at Rangers was eking out room in behind full-backs and central defenders to create dangerous situations in the final third. Despite the impressive work in build-up and an intelligent appreciation of space, Patterson’s delivery from wide areas can be suspect, although with his ability to carve out these crossing opportunities of his own accord, there is scope for improvement.
As is often the case with young defenders, there is room to further hone his defensive craft and minutes at Premier League level will ensure of that. Patterson has signed a contract with Everton until 2027 and the intention is to gradually integrate the pacey full-back.
In terms of under-23 talent, Scotland have a decent core of emerging players – even if many of them are full-backs! Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson are two of those, both of whom are in top-five leagues. Ben Doak is one to watch, as is Alex Lowry.
Celtic and Rangers are the powerhouses of Scotland’s youth development, at least domestically, owing to their historical size and financial power. Smaller Scottish clubs – like Hibernian, Hearts, Aberdeen, Dundee United, and so on – also regularly produce good young players as well.
