The image of Sturrock with shirts outside shorts and socks rolled down is still soldered into minds of those who saw him, and though the recollections are perhaps mostly of the winger wearing a tangerine-coloured top, he was a thorn in the sides of defences for Scotland too. He won 20 caps and played in one World Cup – two appearances at Mexico ’86 - and was unfortunate not to have many more Scotland experiences. Sadly for him, players of the calibre of one K Dalglish were around in his position at the time.placeholder image
The image of Sturrock with shirts outside shorts and socks rolled down is still soldered into minds of those who saw him, and though the recollections are perhaps mostly of the winger wearing a tangerine-coloured top, he was a thorn in the sides of defences for Scotland too. He won 20 caps and played in one World Cup – two appearances at Mexico ’86 - and was unfortunate not to have many more Scotland experiences. Sadly for him, players of the calibre of one K Dalglish were around in his position at the time.

Scotland's greatest football players as top 50 of the last 50 years ranked and rated

Alan Pattullo
By Alan Pattullo

Chief Football Writer

Published 7th Jun 2024, 07:15 BST
Updated 7th Jun 2024, 10:24 BST

We list the top 50 footballers from these shores – going back to 1974 to the present day

In the build-up to Euro 2024, The Scotsman has embarked on a project to list the top 50 Scotland players of the past 50 years.

This is not an easy exercise by any stretch of the imagination. There have been so many immensely talented football players to pull on the blue shirt of Scotland since 1974. Undoubtedly, this list will spark debate because many viewers are defined by their era, what they look for in a footballer and what their memories are of the national team. But that is the beauty of collating such a list – it is designed to get people thinking, to spark debate and recollections of some wonderful players to represent this country.

We run the list down from No 50 to No 1 and next week, we will release a two-part, 90-minute video with former Scotland winger and now pundit Pat Nevin, who in discussion with our chief football writer Alan Pattullo and sports editor Mark Atkinson picks his XI from our list that, in a hypothetical situation, would take on Germany in the Euro 2024 opener – and go on to win the tournament (maybe). Watch out for that landing on www.scotsman.com in the coming days.

So, without further ado, here is The Scotsman’s top 50 Scotland players from the past 50 years:

Needs just one goal to equal Ally McCoist’s total of 19 for Scotland and go joint fourth in the all-time Scotland international scoring charts, which is a phenomenal achievement for a midfielder who took 16 internationals to get off the mark, scoring in a 2-1 defeat to Russia at Hampden in 2019. Has been pushed higher up the pitch under Steve Clarke to assuredly good effect and now it’s now hard to imagine a Scotland team without his bustling presence. Currently on 64 caps, the 29-year-old has spoken of hitting 100 caps. He’s currently on 64.

13. Number 38 - John McGinn

Needs just one goal to equal Ally McCoist’s total of 19 for Scotland and go joint fourth in the all-time Scotland international scoring charts, which is a phenomenal achievement for a midfielder who took 16 internationals to get off the mark, scoring in a 2-1 defeat to Russia at Hampden in 2019. Has been pushed higher up the pitch under Steve Clarke to assuredly good effect and now it’s now hard to imagine a Scotland team without his bustling presence. Currently on 64 caps, the 29-year-old has spoken of hitting 100 caps. He’s currently on 64. Photo: Craig Foy - SNS Group

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Many wonder what might have happened had he been fit for the Euro 2000 play off v England – Paul Scholes would likely not have been permitted to score twice at Hampden in the first leg for starters. A genuinely classy presence in the midfielder for Scotland, he won his first cap v Japan while still with Motherwell. He left Fir Park in the summer of 1996 under the new Bosman rule and ended up at Borussia Dortmund of all places. During his spell there he became a European Cup winner, keeping Zinedine Zidane quiet in the 1997 final v Juventus. By now at Celtic, the midfielder retired from international duty after the failed World Cup campaign in 2002 but was persuaded to return under new manager Berti Vogts, who was understandably impressed by Lambert’s time in Germany. Lambert skippered Scotland in another failed campaign, scoring one of the goals v the Faroes as the team clawed a draw v the Faroes in the Vogts’ first competitive game in charge. He won 12 caps in his second chapter under Vogts to leave him on 40 caps and one goal.

14. Number 37 - Paul Lambert

Many wonder what might have happened had he been fit for the Euro 2000 play off v England – Paul Scholes would likely not have been permitted to score twice at Hampden in the first leg for starters. A genuinely classy presence in the midfielder for Scotland, he won his first cap v Japan while still with Motherwell. He left Fir Park in the summer of 1996 under the new Bosman rule and ended up at Borussia Dortmund of all places. During his spell there he became a European Cup winner, keeping Zinedine Zidane quiet in the 1997 final v Juventus. By now at Celtic, the midfielder retired from international duty after the failed World Cup campaign in 2002 but was persuaded to return under new manager Berti Vogts, who was understandably impressed by Lambert’s time in Germany. Lambert skippered Scotland in another failed campaign, scoring one of the goals v the Faroes as the team clawed a draw v the Faroes in the Vogts’ first competitive game in charge. He won 12 caps in his second chapter under Vogts to leave him on 40 caps and one goal. Photo: SNS Group 0141 221 3602

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Gave sterling service to Scotland after making his debut in a friendly against the United States when still at Hibs. He made his mark as a striker initially with the Scotland Under-19 side but he will be remembered as a combative midfielder for the full side as well as at Celtic, who he joined from Hibs in a record deal between two Scottish clubs. He relished playing under Gordon Strachan for both club and country and skippered Scotland for the first time in Strachan’s first game as international manager – a 1-0 win over Estonia at Pittodrie in 2013. Brown played 55 times for Scotland, adding five more caps to his total after coming out of retirement in a bid to help Scotland to the 2018 World Cup.

15. Number 36 - Scott Brown

Gave sterling service to Scotland after making his debut in a friendly against the United States when still at Hibs. He made his mark as a striker initially with the Scotland Under-19 side but he will be remembered as a combative midfielder for the full side as well as at Celtic, who he joined from Hibs in a record deal between two Scottish clubs. He relished playing under Gordon Strachan for both club and country and skippered Scotland for the first time in Strachan’s first game as international manager – a 1-0 win over Estonia at Pittodrie in 2013. Brown played 55 times for Scotland, adding five more caps to his total after coming out of retirement in a bid to help Scotland to the 2018 World Cup. Photo: SNS Group Steve Welsh

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Scorer of perhaps the most watched Scotland goal of all time when he tucked away a penalty in front of hundreds of millions watching on tv across the globe in the opening game of the 1998 World Cup. He smiled as he struck the ball already knowing full well it was destined to hit the net and this summed up the class and confidence Collins brought to the Scotland midfield over 58 appearances, the last of which was the 1-0 win over England at Wembley in the Euro 2000 play-off in 1999. He made his debut when still at Hibs in 1988 and scored in a 2-2 friendly draw against Saudi Arabia.

16. Number 35 - John Collins

Scorer of perhaps the most watched Scotland goal of all time when he tucked away a penalty in front of hundreds of millions watching on tv across the globe in the opening game of the 1998 World Cup. He smiled as he struck the ball already knowing full well it was destined to hit the net and this summed up the class and confidence Collins brought to the Scotland midfield over 58 appearances, the last of which was the 1-0 win over England at Wembley in the Euro 2000 play-off in 1999. He made his debut when still at Hibs in 1988 and scored in a 2-2 friendly draw against Saudi Arabia. Photo: TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA

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