Scotland boss Steve Clarke hails Hearts defender John Souttar as 'story of the night'
The 25-year-old centre-back scored a first-half header on his first appearance for the national team in three years and helped clubmate Craig Gordon keep a clean sheet to raise the roof at Hampden Park as Scotland beat Denmark 2-0 to boost their World Cup prospects for Qatar 2022.
Souttar’s fourth cap came three years after his last Scotland appearance, when he was sent off against Israel in November 2018.
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Hide AdHe has battled his way through a series of career threatening Achilles injuries since then, returning to fitness and form for Hearts this season and earning a late call up to Clarke’s squad last week.
The Scotland boss said: “John Souttar can be the story of the night for me. To come back from the injuries that John had over such a long period of time, it was a bonus, and I know how happy he was, just to be in the squad to get the chance to play.
“To play the way he played – and obviously the goal was the icing on the cake for him – His performance was outstanding as well.
“Congratulations to John. I gave him a big hug when he came off the pitch and it was quite emotional. You understand when you’ve been a player yourself and you’ve been involved in the game for so long how difficult it is on the road back.
“I’m absolutely delighted for John.”