Southampton defender Tino Livramento has revealed that he is eligible to play for Scotland, potentially sparking a tug-of-war for his services at international level.
Livramento, who was born in England and represented the Three Lions at youth level, told a Q&A on the Premier League side’s YouTube channel that his mum has pushed him to play for Scotland when asked whether his dad would like to see him represent Portugal, saying: “He’s never fully said it but you kind of see that you wouldn’t mind it.
Tino Livramento and Ralph Hasenhuttl at full time of the Premier League match between Chelsea and Southampton . (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
“I think my mum’s probably more the one who wants me to play for Scotland over anyone.”
The former Chelsea kid left Stamford Bridge over the summer to join the Saints in a £5million, with a reported £25million buyback clause included as part of the deal to take him to the south coast.
Before leaving the Blues, Livramento featured on the bench for Thomas Tuchel’s side but never saw any game time for the first team before his move to St. Mary’s.
While some Scotland fans could get excited at the prospect of Livramento swapping the Three Lions for the Lion Rampant, the defender was involved last night as England’s under-21s threw away a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Slovenia.
Since moving to Southampton, the defender has made seven Premier League appearances for the Saints and he admitted earlier this week that he had to leave Chelsea to fulfil his Premier League dream, saying: “I feel like if I stayed there or did other things, then [playing Premier League football] wouldn’t have happened as quick as it has now. I wouldn’t say I have any regrets but it would have been nice [to have played for Chelsea].
“I had to think what was best for me. Being young, I’ve always wanted to just play first-team football as soon as possible.
“It was a hard decision for everyone involved. They agreed that it was best for me as well and they’ve always looked after me.”
If he is equally eager to play senior international football, a switch to Scotland could be the best move for him with competition from Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James, Kieran Trippier and Kyle Walker to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s side.
With Stephen O’Donnell and Nathan Patterson battling it out for the right-back berth in the Scotland side, you’d think the Croydon-born defender would stand a better chance of winning caps.
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