Liverpool and Scotland star Charlie Adam is backing the campaign to open a national football academy in Dundee.
The midfielder met North East Labour MSP Jenny Marra at Ibrox on Tuesday night where Liverpool were playing a friendly against his former club Rangers to support to her campaign.
He said: ”I fully support the campaign to build Scotland’s national football academy in my home town of Dundee.”
Miss Marra has said Dundee would be an ideal location for the multi-million-pound academy and that sports investment should be made on a more equal geographic basis given the large amount of public money being spent readying Glasgow for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Over a thousand people have already signed a petition on Miss Marra’s website (link) backing her call for the academy to be established in Dundee.
She said: ”Charlie Adam is an international star and he obviously knows the importance of good football training and knows that Dundee would be an ideal place for such a facility.
”I am delighted that Charlie thinks it is a good idea and has backed the campaign. I will continue to press for the national academy to be set up in Dundee.”
Charlie progressed from the youth setup at Dundee before moving to Rangers when he was 15.
The former Braeview Academy pupil was sent on loan to Ross County and St Mirren before becoming a key member of the squad which reached the 2008 UEFA Cup final.
He fell out of favour and moved on loan to Blackpool in 2008-09, securing a permanent transfer a year later. After helping Blackpool to promotion to the Premier League, he signed for Liverpool for a fee of £7.7 million this summer.
His father, Charlie senior, played for St Johnstone and Dundee United while his younger brother Grant is Rangers under-19 goalkeeper.
Plans to build a national football academy in Scotland were a key SNP election pledge, and Dundee FC have already given their backing to Miss Marra’s campaign.
The Scottish Government said it remains committed to creating a national football academy but that discussions with the SFA and sportscotland on how to move the project forward are ongoing.