Rangers star Glenn Middleton followed up some glowing praise from a young La Liga talent by scoring the only goal as the Scotland U21s drew with Turkey.
The Young Scots are hoping to make the European U21 Championships and got their campaign underway with a spirited draw in Bursa.
A total of five young Rangers stars were involved in the match which saw Scotland score early and concede late in what panned out to be a frustrating match.
Defender Lewis Mayo, midfielders Stephen Kelly & Ben Williamson, and attackers Glen Middleton & Kai Kennedy were all involved from the start with the U21s having a strong Rangers contingent.
Former Ibrox striker Zak Rudden would also come off the bench in the match.
But it was Glenn Middleton – on loan at St Johnstone against this season – who fired in a half-volley to break the deadlock early on.
Alongside another Ger Stephen Kelly, Middleton was singled out by Athletic Bilbao striker Ewan Urain as being amongst the brightest talents in the Scotland camp.
“I think there are some very special players and to play alongside them is something that is very special,” said Urain [BBC Scotland].
“I especially like Glenn [Middleton]. He is the one that would most like to learn Spanish, I don’t know why.
“There is also Stephen Kelly, I call him ‘El Mago’ which is the magician.
“They are both very special players and I learn so much training with them.”
However, the Scots couldn’t hold on for an impressive result after Enis Destan equalised for the Turks with just over 15 minutes to go.
The Scotland U21s can certainly take plenty from the result and they’ll be hoping to improve in a tough group which also contains Belgium, Denmark and Kazakhstan.
The tournament is set to take place in the summer of 2023 and will be hosted by Romania and Georgia.
Read more about the comments of Ewan Urain as the Rangers Academy gets recognised by an emerging La Liga talent.
