Ryan Gauld has revealed how he reacted to his first Scotland call-up in a decade – by going straight back to bed.
The former Dundee United favourite has been rewarded for his blistering form with Vancouver Whitecaps with a place in Steve Clarke’s group to face Poland and Portugal on Nations League duty.
Gauld, 28, was previously named in a Scotland squad in September 2014, when he and Stevie May were late selections by Gordon Strachan for a showdown with Georgia.
However, the classy attacking midfielder didn’t feature and remains uncapped.
Gauld hopes to belatedly remedy that in the coming international window.
But there was no time to celebrate, given the news of his call-up broke at around 4am in Vancouver and he had a huge Canadian Championship semi-final clash against Pacific FC the following day.
“I found out during the night,” Gauld told the assembled media following the Whitecaps’ 1-0 win over Pacific.
“The squad was announced at around midday in Scotland. I knew when it was being announced so I woke up in the middle of the night and said, “okay, call-up” – and I went back to bed.”
He added: “It’s a nice feeling to be recognised again and get a chance to train with everyone and be around it. It’s going to be a good week and I’m looking forward to it.”
Gauld: I appreciate the support from Scottish fans
There has been a clamour for Gauld’s selection among a portion of the Tartan Army following five years of excellent output, from joining Farense in 2019 and thriving in the Portuguese top-flight, to becoming the Whitecaps’ talisman and club captain.
He boasts 37 goals and 39 assists from 123 games since making the switch to MLS in 2021.
And after patiently biding his time, Gauld is determined to justify his place in the squad.
“I appreciate the support and recognition from everyone back home who feels that I should be in the squad,” he added.
“Hopefully, I can go in there and show that I should be back again. It’ll be a good week to experience.”
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