Scotland forward Chris Martin hopes to give his Glaswegian father the perfect birthday present by hitting the winner against England on Saturday.
The Derby County forward was born and raised in Suffolk but his father Gerry never allowed him to forget his Scottish roots.
Martin scored a dramatic late winner for Gordon Strachan’s side in March’s 1-0 victory against Slovenia and the 28-year-old would love to get the chance to lead the line for his country against Gareth Southgate’s side at Hampden.
He said: “A last-minute winner wouldn’t be bad this time.
“My dad, Gerry, who turns 60, actually mentioned it. It’s his birthday on Saturday, so I’ll be buzzing if can play any kind of part and recreate what happened last time.
“It wasn’t about me, though, it was about the result for the country. But, obviously, he was delighted, as were the rest of my family.
“There were about 15 of them at the game last time and there will be a fair few this time as well.
“My dad moved to England when he was maybe 20 or 21 but he’s from Glasgow and he’s the reason I am here.
“He’s been a big part in the Scottish bandwagon and the family are all up here. Hopefully, I can score the winner for them.
“My dad was always strong on our Scottish heritage, so I never had the choice. You don’t mess with your dad.
“We’ve never been allowed to forget where we’re from. Sometimes the people who live away from home are the most passionate, 100%.”
Martin was booed by the Tartan Army when he came on as a substitute against Slovenia with 12 minutes remaining of a crucial World Cup qualifier in March.
But the jeers soon turned to cheers when Martin stroked home the winning goal to keep Scotland’s hopes of reaching next year’s finals in Russia alive.
He said: “I am still on a high from it now. The memories are still fresh. It was pretty special as it got us back on track. As much as we tried to play it down at the time, it was a vital win for us.
“I was really happy with it and hopefully we can take the confidence from that game in to Saturday.
“I’ve not had too many Scotland supporters saying sorry. They don’t need to apologise to me. They can voice their opinion all they like. Hopefully, I can change their minds if they don’t have a high opinion in the first place.
“I am a professional and my job is to get out on the pitch and get the winner. I was lucky enough for that to happen.
“The manager has backed me from the start. I’ve been involved in just about every squad so it was nice to repay some of that faith.
“It was a big one for us and everyone was buzzing going back in to the changing room. Everyone was congratulating me but it was a good performance from everyone.
“Before I even got on the pitch I felt we should have been two or three up, so I think we got our just rewards for our performance on the night.”
Martin knows he could go down as a legendary figure with the Scottish support if he provides the match-winning goal against England on Saturday.
He said: “It doesn’t even bare thinking about. I just need to keep my head down and hopefully play a part. Obviously, every lad can dream.
“Everyone will be hoping they are the one who can step up, score the winner or contribute in a big way.
“I’d be delighted if it was me but, first and foremost, getting the three points would be massive and it doesn’t really matter who puts the goal in. Everyone would be delighted.
“We need the points. It was a big one last time and it got us back in to contention for second place.
“Another win would bring England closer to us and it would be huge for the country. It’s been a long time since we beat England at Hampden so hopefully we are a squad that’s able to do that.”
