Robertson’s Scotland career in numbers as 100th cap looms

ByThomas Duncan

BBC Sport Scotland

Andy Robertson is poised to become only the second man to win 100 caps for Scotland in more than 150 years of international football.

The national captain could hit the century mark in Saturday’s Nations League game against North Macedonia as he closes in on the all-time cap record.

A constant presence since Gordon Strachan handed him his debut in 2014 when he was a fresh-faced left-back with Dundee United, Robertson has defined a generation of the Scotland national team.

Here, BBC Scotland charts the Tottenham Hotspur defender’s international career in numbers.

Closing in on Dalglish’s record

The great Kenny Dalglish is the only man to have pulled on the navy blue of Scotland more times than Robertson.

‘King Kenny’ still tops the list on 102 caps, but that could be eclipsed by his friend come November should the 32-year-old feature in each of Scotland’s remaining Nations League games this year.

It is fitting that it will be Robertson who surpasses that long-standing milestone, given the pair have forged a friendship over his time with Liverpool.

Not that Dalglish is having that.

“He always says ‘you’ve got millions more games; Nations League, what’s that? They didn’t have that in my day!'” Robertson joked on the Stick to Football podcast recently.

“I think he might bring up a ratio for years-to-games-played so he’s still on top.

“It’s obviously something that’s been on my radar for a while now. When you get to 80-odd caps, you start to look up.”

Dalglish can console himself that his record of 30 goals – held jointly with Denis Law – is safely out of Robertson’s reach.

Of current players, John McGinn is lurking only eight behind Robertson on the all-time list, though, so the Scotland men’s centurion club could have three members soon.

Scotland’s greatest captain?

Since being given the armband by Alex McLeish after Scott Brown retired in 2018, Robertson has captained Scotland 29 times more than any other player.

At the time, he had earned just 22 caps and was just 24 but had established himself as Liverpool’s left-back as they reached the Champions League final.

Now, he is the only man to have lead Scotland out at three major finals, reaching the milestone at the World Cup this summer.

Scotland and Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay enthused: “He’s such a great captain and he’s got that good balance between being one of the senior players and saying you need to wake up if you’re not playing well.

“Then he’s also got the personable side, organising things with the manager, helping young players and stuff. He’s brilliant with that, brilliant.”

Steve Clarke’s man

Robertson has played under four different permanent Scotland team bosses in his 12-year international career.

It was Strachan who plucked him from the under-21s to hand him his debut as a 19-year-old in a win over Poland in March 2014.

McLeish made him captain in 2018, calling Robertson the “outstanding candidate” and an “inspirational figure” – and now he has played twice for new boss Sebastien Pocognoli.

He even played one game under interim manager Malky Mackay in a friendly against the Netherlands at Pittodrie in 2017 as the Scottish FA searched for Strachan’s replacement.

However, it is Steve Clarke’s seven-year stint that Robertson will be mainly associated with, as the pair lead Scotland to three major tournaments.

Robertson played 68 times for Clarke, all of them as captain, and the recently departed head coach consistently praised his figurehead.

“He’s been a fantastic captain for Scotland,” Clarke said at the World Cup.

“He’s worked ever so hard for the country and he leads the group like the leader he is – and he’s very, very important to me and the squad.”

Can I assist?

Given his longevity, it is perhaps no surprise that Robertson also tops the Scotland assist charts since his debut in 2014.

However, Robertson’s rampaging runs and crosses from left-back have been pivotal for a Scotland side that has never been free-scoring during his career.

And, although he only has four Scotland goals, there have been a couple of important ones.

His strike against Cyprus helped ensure the Clarke era started with a win in 2019. And his last-minute winner against Poland in 2024 temporarily staved off Nations League relegation.

That was the last time Robertson scored for Scotland.

How Robertson’s 99 caps break down

Over the piece, Robertson’s caps are spread fairly evenly among friendlies and qualification games.

Crucially, though, he has also played nine times in major tournaments. What will rankle with him is there is only one win among those nine – June’s victory over Haiti in Boston at the World Cup.

Overall, though, Robertson’s Scotland career can be characterised by consistency.

He has started 97 of his 99 caps, and played an average of 83 minutes per game, rarely ever being substituted. He has not missed a camp in three years.

The only question seems to be how many Scotland caps will Robertson end up with? At 32 and still playing in the Premier League, it appears there will be plenty more to come.

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