Ben Doak ready to ‘make a difference’ after Scotland Euro 2024 heartbreak

Scotland youngster Ben Doak admits it was “gutting” to miss out on Euro 2024 with the national team but is looking to the future with belief that he can make a difference in attack for Steve Clarke’s side.

The 18-year-old was a surprise inclusion in the manager’s initial 26-man squad for the tournament in the summer but a failure to recover fully from injury meant he missed the cut and stayed at home when the squad flew out to Germany.

Doak said he had the support of family and friends to help get over his disappointment but his mood wasn’t lifted by watching on as Scotland failed to get out of their group

“It was gutting,” he said. “The injury wasn’t too serious and I was back training shortly after but I just came back a little bit too early.

“Watching the games, it was gutting how it went, obviously going out of the tournament in the last minute. That just kind of drove me on more to hope that I could get back in the squad and make a difference.

“Maybe. Football is football. I might have played a decent bit or I might not have got on the pitch at all. We’re never going to know.

“But I would like to think I would have made a bit of a difference.”

Fit again, the Liverpool forward moved to Middlesbrough on loan in the summer and says he’s thrilled to be playing regularly and developing his game as he plays week in, week out. He returned to the Scotland squad for the last international camp and made his debut from the bench against Poland.

Doak admitted that he was so caught up in trying to help Scotland get a result that the impact of his debut didn’t sink in immediately, though he revealed that his family were watching on from the stands and his mum shed a tear.

That first cap marked the latest step on a rise that has been swift even allowing for the Euros setback, and Doak said he’s now looking forward to more moments like it.

“A few years ago, I didn’t expect to be here at 18,” he said. “Even getting picked in the 26-man squad for the Euros, especially the way the season went before it. I had missed the full second half of the season.

“Now it just feels like normal, like it’s on to the next thing, and the next thing, and the next thing.

“So hopefully I can just keep doing well and keep in the right people’s thoughts.”

Now, he’s looking ahead to the double-header against Croatia and Portugal and determined to make the most of any opportunity Clarke hands him.

“I think it’s a dream for any young lad, especially in Scotland where everyone wants to be a footballer,” he said. “Everyone wants to pull that jersey on and help get that win for us.

“If I’m starting games or coming off the bench, that’s not up to me. But whether I play 90 minutes or five minutes I need to go and leave it all out there.”

And if the winger is asked to put his pace to use in a more central role, he’s happy to try and “do a job”.

“I would be comfortable doing it,” Doak said. “I think I would offer us something a bit different.

“I played number nine in the youth teams so I think I would be able to do a job but again, that’s not my decision whether I play there or not.”