Gemmill sets ambitious goals

Scotland legend Archie Gemmill is tipping his side to be the surprise package of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship finals in Poland later this month. The young Scots, who ousted holders France in qualifying, have been drawn in a tough group against Spain, Portugal and Turkey but Gemmill, who shares the managerial responsibilities with coach Tommy Wilson, is quietly confident the team are capable of causing an upset and possibly even going on to win the trophy.

'Toughest possible draw'
"It's the toughest possible draw for us, but we will aim for second place in the group or better and take it from there," Gemmill told uefa.com. "These lads deserve to succeed because of the effort they put into matches. They have been absolutely fantastic for me over the past two years. If they can keep that up and get the breaks you require to be successful in cup competition, it would be a major disappointment if they didn't reach the semi-finals and after that anything is possible."

Famed goal
As a member of the Scotland squad that travelled to the 1978 FIFA World Cup in Argentina with hopes of winning the tournament, Gemmill is only too well aware of the dangers of making extravagant predictions. Although the former Nottingham Forest FC midfielder scored perhaps the goal of the tournament with his mazy solo run and finish against the Netherlands, the eventual finalists, the Scots’ campaign still ended in disappointment for Ally MacLeod's much-hyped side at the group stage. Almost 30 years later that goal is still an inspiration to young players in his homeland, but Gemmill is hoping this generation of players can help to write a new chapter in the annals of Scottish football history.

Looking for new heroes
"To be honest I’m fed up talking about that goal and hopefully someone will come along soon and score an even better goal for Scotland," said Gemmill, who also doubles as a scout for national coach Walter Smith south of the border. "Scotland has come through a pretty barren time at international level in recent years and it says something that 20 years have gone by since we’ve reached a major finals at this level. But a lot of the players in this squad will soon be vying for Under-21 positions and within two years, I predict the majority of them will be pushing for a place in Walter’s squad which has to be good news for Scotland in the long term."

'High hopes'
According to Gemmill the upturn in fortunes has a lot to do with the increasing number of young Scottish players getting first-team experience with top-flight clubs like Hibernian FC, Heart of Midlothian FC and Livingston FC, something he believes will stand them in good stead in Poland. “The likes of Steven Whittaker, Steven Fletcher, Callum Elliot, Lee Wallace, Robert Snodgrass and Graham Dorrans were all regulars for Hibs, Hearts and Livingston and had excellent seasons which is a big help to me," Gemmill added. "Then there are players like our captain Scott Cuthbert [of Celtic FC] who has been exceptional for me over the past two years. So, we have a lot of talent, good lads with a fantastic attitude and they now have experience to go with that. Personally, it will mean a lot to me when I see the boys walk out for that first match against Portugal, but it's all about the players and I genuinely think we can go to Poland with high hopes of doing well."