Scotland hero Kenny McLean admitted he felt 'pure joy' when he discovered he was in the World Cup squad, and he's convinced Steve Clarke's side can make history this summer in the USA.
Norwich City stalwart McLean was viewed as a certainty to be included in Clarke's squad after amassing 56 caps for his country and scoring an iconic goal from inside his own half against Denmark in November, which finally secured Scotland's qualification for the World Cup after 28 years.
But he admitted he certainly didn't presume he would be in that 26-man squad, after revealing he's already back training. McLean said: "Every opportunity I get to represent my country, I take immense pride in. I never take anything for granted, so when my name was there on the sheet, it was just pure joy.
"All the lads have been speaking and the realisation is coming because seasons have come to an end, and that’s what’s next for us. You don’t want to look too far ahead while the season’s going on. Nobody does. But when we meet up next week, it’s going to be incredible.
"Steve Clarke did his press conference at 12, and we got an email maybe around 10, so that’s when the messages start coming into the group chat when you see everybody that’s there.
"An official group chat was started after the World Cup squad was named, so everybody was in that, and there was plenty of joy.
"Now that your name’s secure in there, it’s something to look forward to. I took a week off after the season, but I’m already back working and getting ready, preparing as well as I can.
"I’ve got a lot of work to do in the sauna to try and acclimatise, but it’s going to be an incredible occasion."
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Scotland have never qualified past the group stages from any tournament they have been involved in - stretching back from 1954 and extending to eight World Cups and four European Championships.
And the 34-year-old is determined to change that. He said: "It’s 28 years since the country was at a World Cup, so it doesn’t come round too often for us. I think it’s every young boy’s dream to be at a World Cup.
"I’m very fortunate that I’ve got the opportunity to go and represent my country, and it’s one that I’ll do with immense pride, and I’ll give everything I can.
"We don’t just want to be there to make up the numbers. We want to do more than we’ve done before, and no Scotland team has ever got out of the group, so that’s our first hurdle. We’re confident we can do it.
"We’ve already created great memories, but we want to go one step further. We want to do more, and we know we can do more. We’ve got the ability to do it, but it’s about going and producing it now.
"It’s something special and I don’t say that lightly. It’s incredible."
McLean paid tribute to boss Clarke, who could be set to extend his stay as Scotland manager. He said: "Obviously, I’ve been involved since the manager came in. I’ve not always played, but that’s due to the competition for places.
"My position is the strongest that we’ve had in a long time in the country, but he’s always put his trust in me, always backed me, and I’ve always tried to give him as much as I can.
"He’s given me over 50 caps, so that shows the level of trust he has in me as an individual and in us as a squad. We trust him to take us as far as we can.”
