Aaron Hickey told to be patient as ex-Hearts defender senses chance to cement a Scotland place

That is the view of former Hearts coach Jon Daly, who coached Hickey at Riccarton and has since watched him flourish in Serie A with Bologna.

The 19-year-old earned his first senior call-up from national coach Steve Clarke this week, and Daly said Scotland could no longer ignore such a versatile defender.

“Aaron is a very talented young man and has had a very quick rise through the ranks. He played in a Scottish Cup final for Hearts at the age of 16 and then got the move to Bologna.

“You could always tell he was a player likely to get an opportunity at international level. There are two fantastic left-backs in front of him in Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney, so he was going to need to be patient and bide his time.

“Aaron can play a number of positions. He is actually right-footed so he could comfortably play right-back if needed.

“I saw that he didn’t accept an Under-21 call-up and it’s disappointing for them because they want to utilise him. He obviously has a clear focus on where he wants to be. This is a fantastic chance for him with Scotland.

“You keep an eye on Aaron having worked with him and you see he is doing really well over in Italy. Steve Clarke isn’t afraid to give young guys a chance – Billy Gilmour, Nathan Patterson, now Aaron.

“If he comes in and does well, he could find himself in the next couple of squads.”