Rangers first-team coach Michael Beale sent a congratulatory message to Nathan Patterson on Twitter on Sunday following his Scotland debut.
19-year-old Patterson had already been capped at U17, U18, U19 and U21 level but only recently received his maiden senior call-up.
He was forced to stay behind as a Covid-19 precaution when the majority of his teammates flew from Scotland’s base in Spain to the Algarve for a friendly against the Netherlands in midweek, but his debut would come just a few days later in another friendly against Luxembourg.
The Gers Academy graduate was subbed on for the final 26 minutes at the Stade Josy Barthel and he impressed supporters.
Luxembourg are far from a top side but he was still tested several times defensively and responded well, while he also gave glimpses of the threat he possesses in the final third with several impressive runs.
It wasn’t just Rangers and Scotland fans that were praising the teenager after the game, either, with Beale sending a message of his own via Twitter.
“Huge congratulations to Nathan and family,” he wrote. “Excellent achievement and hopefully the 1st of many.”
https://twitter.com/MichaelBeale/status/1401618108666757122
At one point, the ‘Covid Five’ incident looked set to ruin a 2020/21 season that, until that point, had contained very little game time for Patterson.
However, the delayed disciplinary process and an injury to James Tavernier gave him a number of opportunities in high-profile fixtures and he grabbed them all.
Now, he’ll be eyeing a competitive debut at the Euros, with Scotland’s first fixture against the Czech Republic at Hampden only a week away.
In other news, a Rangers star is reportedly at the top of a European club’s list of targets and they are keen to pull off a transfer ‘as soon as possible’.
