Exclusive:Ex-Man Utd man reveals Sir Alex Ferguson chat that led to Scotland call and why he owes debt to Rangers icon

Eligible to represent Scotland despite being born in Salford via his Glasgow-born father, Bardsley made his international bow against world champions Spain in a Euro 2012 qualifier, starting at right-back as the home side narrowly lost a ding-dong battle 3-2 at Hampden Park.

Going on to become a mainstay in Scotland’s back four during that qualifying campaign, he won 13 caps for the national team. Bardsley is also a veteran of over 300 appearances in the English Premier League, playing for the likes of Sunderland, Stoke City and Burnley. Recalling his time in a navy jersey, he revealed that making Scotland bow was half a decade in the making.

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“I loved playing for Scotland, absolutely loved it,” recalled Bardsley. “There were talks about it for four or five years but nothing actually came of it. It was just one of those things when I was playing for Manchester United and there were some conversations where Sir Alex pulled into his office a couple of times about it. It didn’t really go any further until I was at Sunderland and Craig Levein called me up to play in the qualifiers. I said yes straight away.

“The teams we played against, the Czechs and the Spanish, and what an experience it was. We fell short in the end but to play against them, to hear the national anthems at Hampden Park, it doesn’t get any better than that. It was honestly one of the best moments of my career, even though we lost the game. The whole occasion, representing Scotland, was phenomenal.

“We gave them such a good game only to lose it late on, that was a killer, but it was a game that had everything: goals, tackles, arguing, rain, sleet! It’s a game I looked back on and think that was a proper game of football, it was just disappointing to be on the losing side. It was a great experience other than the result.”

Bardsley, who spent six months on loan to Rangers as a youngster, also reminisced about his former international teammates and the impact they had on the Scotland squad at the time. Asked who he thought was the best talent during his spell as the national team’s right-back, the ex-Sunderland favourite didn’t hesitate to name two iconic former Scottish midfielders.

“Darren Fletcher was unbelievable in training,” recalled Bardsley via an interview with Casinolyze. “I’d played with him since we were 16 and I knew all about his qualities and the demands that he put on himself and other players, and the standards he set, but even so he was just head and shoulders above everyone else. It was when he was flourishing at Manchester United too after a pretty tough start, starting every week, and you could tell his confidence was through the roof.

“Fletch was just a normal guy who gave everything and loved his football. Worked his socks off. We had great camaraderie as a team but he went out of his way to help me and other players. He was such a key figure in the squad and obviously we knew each other as teammates from United but when I finally decided to step up and play for Scotland, there was no one better than Fletch.

“Barry Ferguson was outstanding too [during his spell on loan at Rangers], the standards that he set every day in training and he looked after me. He knew I was a young lad coming away and he went above and beyond to make sure I was fine with any family stuff and sorting tickets out, all that type of stuff that otherwise goes unnoticed or people probably wouldn’t know about. Barry Ferguson was such a great guy to me.”