FIFA tournament in USA, Canada and Mexico is on the teen’s radar

James Wilson was born nine years after Scotland’s last World Cup appearance. Now 18, the Hearts striker is one of this country’s most prodigious talents with the potential to reach the pinnacle of his chosen sport. For any footballer, that is the aforementioned greatest show on Earth. It’s been a long time since France 98 as Scotland look to finally qualify for next summer’s finals in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

National coach Steve Clarke carries an established core of experienced players, including Liverpool’s Andy Robertson, Napoli’s Scott McTominay and the Aston Villa captain John McGinn. Wilson holds one senior cap after becoming the youngest internationalist in Scottish history in March. He was also called up for June’s friendlies so is clearly in the manager’s thoughts. He knows season 2025/26 carries huge significance as he looks to produce the club form to earn a seat on Scotland’s World Cup plane.

“It was nice to be called up again in the summer,” said Wilson. “I was a bit disappointed not to get any minutes, but we know we've got a World Cup to try and reach next summer. Hopefully I can kick on this season and get myself in contention for that. Steve said just to keep working hard and keep doing what I'm doing. When I look back at where I was this time last season, I'd only played three first-team games. I hadn't really broken through at all and was playing B team football. If you'd told me this time last year I'd be where I am now, I'd be over the moon.”

The youngster scored six goals in 32 Hearts appearances last season. He wants a significant improvement on that ratio this term and already has two goals from two games in the Premier Sports Cup. The motivation to impress new Hearts head coach Derek McInnes is obvious. “Hopefully I can score a goal a game. Then there's the World Cup at the end of the year, so hopefully I could be involved in that,” said Wilson. “You always want to start well and gain confidence from that. I'm definitely happy to start this season with some goals.

“When you come into pre-season and there are new faces, you want to give the best first impression you can. That's the way I'm looking at it and I think I've done that. When I was with Scotland, the new manager did give me a call. He gave me a few extra days off, to be fair! He said he was looking forward to working with me. It's given me a lot of confidence, him showing the trust in me to play the first two games. If you feel good, you'll play well and it's nice to have that backing.”

It’s also nice to see Lawrence Shankland - another Hearts player who will have World Cup aspirations - staying at Tynecastle after protracted contract negotiations. “Yeah, 100 per cent,” agreed Wilson. “To learn off him and play with him, I think he's one of the best players in the Scottish Premiership. To be able to play with him and learn from him is really good for me. I honestly had no idea [what was going to happen]. He had his reasons and I didn't really want to get involved. I'm just happy he's still here.”

Scotland debut and new strike partners at Hearts

Wilson is now an established member of the first-team dressing room at Riccarton. “I actually made my Scotland debut before I even got in the dressing room. It was nice to get in, see the boys more and try to be in and around it.” He has partnered Shankland, Claudio Braga and Elton Kabangu in Hearts’ first two Premier Sports Cup ties as they beat Dunfermline 4-1 and Hamilton 4-0. The variety has its advantages, although McInnes may well settle on two of the four for league matches.

“It's really nice to play with all of these players, and everyone has come in and scored in these first few games,” Wilson pointed out. “The competition is tough and it's nice to have played both games so far. I've been playing slightly deeper, which is different for me, but it's nice to just be on the pitch. Elton was playing slightly higher than me against Hamilton, which gave me the freedom to float about a bit more and drop in. I gave away the ball a bit more, to be fair! When I came through the academy at Hearts, that's the position I used to play a bit more. I had that freedom role where I could come short and I do enjoy that.”

His goals have nonetheless demonstrated a poacher’s instinct with impeccable timing inside the penalty area. “Everyone says that. I'm a tap-in merchant,” smiled Wilson. “Look, they're the goals as a striker you love to score. You can get so many goals a season just from being in that position. So I'm going to try and put myself in that position where if it drops, I'm getting a tap-in. It's working at the moment.”

Playing alongside the seemingly uninhibitable Braga, you can’t fail to have fun and score goals. “He's the boy. He's a real character in the group,” acknowledged Wilson. “You saw his celebration against Hamilton, which was a bit questionable! He's come in and done well and I'm looking forward to playing more with him.”