Forgotten Scotland star nets Copa Del Rey double to break duck for La Liga side

The Scotland striker had gone 14 appearances without finding the net for the La Liga outfit since making the move from Sheffield United in the summer. He has been outshone up front by former Rangers loanee Fabio Silva, who has put his difficult Ibrox spell behind him to net five times in 11 appearances for the Gran Canaria side since joining on loan from Wolves.

McBurnie has been limited mainly to substitute appearances but was promoted to the starting line-up for the second round cup match away to fourth tier side CE Europa. And he finally got off the mark for the club by netting both goals in a 2-1 victory over the Catalan minnows in what was his first start since October and his first under new manager Diego Martínez.

McBurnie opened the scoring in the 48th minute before the hosts levelled seven minutes later only for the 28-year-old Scot to notch his second with 15 minutes remaining to send Las Palmas into the next round. Scottish team-mate Scott McKenna was rested for the match, only coming off the bench for the closing stages after playing the full 90 minutes of the stunning 2-1 away win over Barcelona on Saturday.

While McKenna is now an established member of the national team set-up, McBurnie will hope to reignite his international aspirations in Spain after falling out of the picture under Scotland head coach Steve Clarke in recent times with the last of his 16 caps, which failed to produce a goal, coming in March 2021.

Elsewhere, Scotland midfielder Lewis Ferguson continued his comeback from injury by playing the first hour of Bologna's 4-0 win over Monza in the Coppa Italia. It was just his second start for the Serie A side since returning from a long-term cruciate ligament injury last month as he continues to build up his minutes.