Rangers fan and Sheffield United striker Oliver McBurnie has landed in hot water with Scotland fans after a video appeared online of him seemingly cursing the national team.
The £20m Premier League striker – who was born in Leeds – is accused of saying “hope not” when asked if he has been called up by Scotland.
McBurnie’s comments were caught by an eagle-eyed Scotland fan with the seemingly innocuous comments made on Sheffield United TV.
https://twitter.com/ryancapperauld/status/1166389883331579909
If you’re listening to that and struggling to make out what the big striker is saying, then you’re certainly not the only one.
This is incredibly dubious and you’d think Tartan Army fans would rather give the big striker the benefit of the doubt.
For the most part – unless McBurnie comes out and clarifies it – you imagine that most of the international team’s supporters will.
But the video has already spawned many complaints from some Scotland fans, and low-and-behold there are even some dragging Rangers into it on the bottom of this thread.
It must be said that the vast majority of the Tartan Army who responded to the clip didn’t bring the player’s club allegiance into the discussion.
But it appears there are plenty of voices desperate to leap on this because of the team he supports.
This does nothing to thaw the frostiness in the relationship between some Rangers fans and the Tartan Army, with the club’s supporters even being split on Ryan Jack being called up to the national team.
There’s also little doubt that this kind of Scottish football tribalism is negatively impacting the Scotland national team’s progress.
As for McBurnie – if that’s how he feels then Scotland fans have every right to feel disrespected by the forward.
Compare that with Ryan Jack, who said last week he was “delighted” at the prospect of playing for Scotland again [Scottish Sun].
