As the most favorite sport in Scotland, football has produced one of the best talents and legends who graced the game. Join me as I unveil the greatest Scottish football players ranging from the old lads like Sir Kenny Dalglish to the current star from Glasgow, Andy Robertson.
According to Statista, football is the most participated game in Scotland with 17% of adults participating which rivals swimming for the top spot. Considering this popularity, it’s no wonder why the country has produced such a great amount of talent that has competed throughout the world.
That said, here are the best Scottish football players in the history of football:
Kenny Dalglish
He is one of the former Liverpool, Scotland, and Celtic players who achieved greatness a few have had to their names.
Also known as King Kenny, the Scottish man has the most caps when it comes to representing Scotland in international football. He had the opportunity to represent Scotland three times in the FIFA World Cup. He scored 30 goals throughout his career and is the leading goal scorer for the national team.
Apart from his national campaigns, Dalglish won three European Silverware with Celtic and Liverpool. He is one of the legends at Anfield and Celtic Park.
He is a real icon and idol for many of the young football prodigies in Scotland today.
Jim Baxter
One of the most technically gifted players who played for Rangers and Scotland in the 1960s, Jim Baxter was a true entertainer. His incredible ability with the ball and his witty moves made him a worthy watch for the Scottish and Rangers fans.
His most memorable moment came around when Scotland faced England in the '60s’ and being the current World Champions, they were the clear favorites to win the game. But little did the watchers know that Jim Baxter had something else planned with his feet. Scotland won the game and he entertained the crowd by juggling the ball in the middle of the match.
He is one of the most decorated Scottish football players having won 10 trophies with Rangers and Scotland throughout his career.
Billy McNeill
Also known as Cesar, Billy was one big giant of a player who is arguably the greatest legend of Celtic.
He completed about five centuries of matches for the club in Glasgow and is now considered one of the most successful players in the club’s history.
He won about 23 trophies in his career with Celtic, one of them being the most prestigious trophy in the world of club football – the European Cup (now the Champions League).
Celtic won the Champions League just once in the 1967 season and Billy was the captain of that dream team. Celtic was the first British club to ever win that silverware.
Andrew Robertson
From getting his first senior cap in 2012 for Queen’s Park to now playing for one of the best English clubs, Andrew, short for Andy Robertson, is the only player from the 21st century to hit my list.
He is my favorite of the bunch. Being in the 21st century, I can relate to him while watching him play week in and out for Liverpool.
He has been serving as the captain of the Scottish national team since 2018. Though he can’t lead the team to any silverware, Euro 2024 is just around the corner, and being a fan, I have my eyes on the tournament. I am all set with my FuboTV subscription and Xfinity home WiFi which is one of the major ISPs in the US that offers affordable plans, supreme network reliability, and reliable Xfinity customer service.
Let’s see how Robertson can lead the team the Scottish national team this time around.
John Greig
Just like Iniesta, and Xavi, John Greig is one of the few players who played for just one club throughout their careers.
He played 755 matches across his 17 years of career for the Rangers. It isn’t like he just played for the club but he brought greatness to the club. Whenever Rangers played Celtic, fans already had their winner in their mind but Greig changed that.
He captained Rangers to end the 35-year streak of losing out to Celtic in the finals. The team came victorious with a scorecard of 3-0. He won a total of 11 trophies with six Scottish Cups and five League Championships.
Not just that, he led the team to its first-ever European trophy with a win over Dynamo Moscow in Barcelona. His loyalty to the club was pure as even after retiring he served the club as the President.
He is certainly one of the greatest names when we talk about Scottish football.
The greatness in this list is certainly an inspiration for many others who are yet to hit the bigger stage. Some of the names that I have in my mind are Doak, Josh McDonald, and Kingdon. Will they be able to achieve the greatness their idols did? Only time will tell but until then I am keeping tabs on them.