Wayne Rooney snubs Scott McTominay as he names Scotland's most important player at Euro 2024

06/14/2024 01:15 PM

Neither Scott McTominay or Andy Robertson will be Scotland’s most important player at Euro 2024, according to Wayne Rooney.

Scotland kick-off the European Championships on Friday night against hosts Germany in Munich.

Though they were impressive in the qualifiers it is predicted that the Tartan Army may struggle to get out of a tricky Group A which also features Hungary and Switzerland.

Steve Clarke’s side have great team spirit however and a number of top-class players including captain and Liverpool defender Robertson and Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn.

Also key to their chances is Manchester United midfielder McTominay who shocked many by scoring seven vital goals in qualifying, a feat bettered only by Romelu Lukaku, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane.

But Rooney believes that another star will either make or break Scotland’s tournament, and he doesn’t even play in the Premier League.

Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet, the England and United legend said: ‘The most important player will be Angus Gunn.

‘If he has a good tournament, Scotland could get out the group. If he doesn't, then it could be difficult.’

Born in Norwich, Gunn switched allegiance to Scotland in March last year having featured plenty of times for England’s youth teams and is now the No.1 goalkeeper ahead of Liam Kelly and Zander Clarke.

The 28-year-old has conceded 11 goals and kept five clean sheets in 10 appearances for his country so far, but has never faced a challenge like the one he will find at the Euros.

The former Manchester City and Southampton keeper also helped Norwich reach the Championship play-offs this season, conceding 52 goals in 43 games and keeping 14 clean sheets.

While some England fans will be hoping Scotland crash and burn at Euro 2024 -and vice-versa – Rooney is hopeful for the home nation and rates their chances.

‘I want Scotland to do well. Whenever they've gone to tournaments, whether it's Wales, Republic of Ireland, Scotland – I always want them to do well,’ he added.

‘Switzerland will finish bottom of the group. I watched Hungary against the Republic of Ireland, it was a warmup game, but they were not great. But before that, they went 14, 15 games unbeaten. Germany will get out and then it will be between Scotland and Hungary.

‘Scotland have always had good players. If you go back throughout the years and think of the [Scottish] players who have played over in England, they have been some of the best players who have played in the country.

‘They have always produced good players; you just need the finances for the league to improve.’

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.