'Space in the team': Ex-Hibs ace calls on 'top' former Celtic teen to switch allegiance to Scotland
Scotland international Ryan Porteous has revealed he is planning to tempt Watford team-mate Rocco Vata to switch his international allegiance to Scotland after his excellent recent form.
The 19-year-old left Celtic in the summer in order to complete a move to Vicarage Road, and has been a key player for the Hornets in recent weeks, notching his first senior goal during a 1-1 draw with Hull City earlier in the month, before providing both assists in their 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion last weekend.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“Rocco's an excellent finisher; he's hungry to score goals, and I'm sure he'll get many more for the club," said Watford head coach Tom Cleverley after his first senior goal vs Hull. "I remember me as a young player coming here. I think I scored on my debut, and you feel accepted then. Rocco won us a point, and I'm really happy for him. It's not the final product part of his game why Rocco's not seeing the pitch as much as he'd like - and that's his challenge to improve the other parts.”


Despite being born in Glasgow, the teenage winger is eligible to play for Albania, Republic of Ireland and Montenegro but has so far opted to wear the green of Ireland, who he is eligible for via his grandmother. However, club teammate Porteous revealed he has plans to tempt Vata to change his allegiance to the Tartan Army after seeing his potential up close.
“I think I might have played against him in his debut actually,” said Porteous. “I spoke to a lot of people in Scotland before he came here and I was aware he was a top player. He’s still very young and not played a lot of first-team games, but he’s one of those players who will get fans off their seats.”
Vata, who rejected a contract at Celtic Park in the summer, has represented the Republic of Ireland from under-15 level to under-21, and shone for Jim Crawford’s under-21 side last year as they narrowly missed out on European Championship qualification. He’s also grown in stature at Watford, where he has recently helped them climb to seventh in the EFL Championship table.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdPorteous added: “Give him the ball and he comes alive. It’s refreshing to see someone that’s like that, and he’s probably the winger that Scotland could probably do with. I’m not sure if he has completely chosen Ireland yet – I’ve not had that conversation with him but I’m going to. If he keeps playing as the way he is now for the next couple of years then I reckon there’s a left winger space in the Scotland team if he wants it.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.