Stephen Welsh was a regular in the Scotland youth teams and captained the Under-21s on a number of occasions, but he has had to bide his time waiting for a senior call-up.

However, following a superb season on loan at Motherwell from Celtic, he earned a move to Swansea City in the summer and he has been an ever-present for the Welsh side who currently top the English Championship.

He believes that this is the perfect time for him to finally get his opportunity at international level:

Welsh was in the crowd during the famous night at Barclays Hampden against Denmark last November and he says the new players will be hoping to help Scotland build on the strong foundations that have been put in place by the group who qualified for three out of the last four major tournaments:

Welsh received a Facetime call from new Head Coach Sébastien Pocognoli and he admitted he is desperate to get on the pitch for the first time over the course of the next two weeks.

Aged 26, the centre-back also sees himself as someone who brings a blend of experience and youthful enthusiasm following his first call-up: