Rangers defender John Souttar started for Scotland against Croatia
Rangers defender John Souttar started for Scotland against Croatia

John Souttar will leave Rangers fans in raptures after what he did on international duty

Jonathan Burnett

Jonny is a University of Leeds journalism graduate who became part of the FootballInsider team in Spring 2024, and recently worked as Head of Media for Widnes Vikings Rugby League club. Writing as a freelance reporter and commentator for The Sporting News and StatsPerform, he has covered matches in competitions including the FIFA Men's and Women's World Cups, as well as the Champions League, Women's Euro 2022, Six Nations and the Rugby Union World Cup.

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John Souttar's cross to set up Scotland's winning goal against Poland capped off a sensational performance from the Rangers defender.

Souttar floated an inch-perfect cross-field ball into the box which Andy Robertson headed in at the far post to give the Tartan Army a 2-1 win in their UEFA Nations League clash on 19 November.

The Gers centre-back had prevented Scotland from conceding at the other end too, clearing a shot off the line after goalkeeper Craig Gordon was beaten and earning the praise of the Scottish media.

John Souttar standing above the parapet for Rangers and Scotland

Souttar's place in the starting lineups for club and country is nailed down and assured after his performances this season, with the 28-year-old now one of the first names on both team sheets.

Scotland have Souttar to thank for their turnaround in form over recent games, with two clean sheets against Portugal and Croatia preceding his last-minute assist to win the game in Warsaw.

Completing 84 per cent of 58 attempted passes throughout the 90 minutes [FotMob], Souttar saw just two of seven long balls find a target – but one that did gave Scotland three vital Nations League points.

Rangers defender John Souttar
John Souttar has become a regular pick at centre-back for club and country this season [Credit: Imago]

That peach of a cross was one of four balls played into the final third by the defender [FotMob], who also won two of his three duels in the air to keep Poland at bay in an end-to-end encounter.

Kept busy and standing tall at the back, Souttar completed four ball recoveries, as well as a further three clearances, two blocks, and that goal-line save which kept Scotland level in the second half [SofaScore].

Returning to Ibrox as arguably the form centre-half in Scotland at the moment, Souttar and Gers fans alike will be hoping he can continue his impressive international displays on the domestic scene.

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