Ryan Christie has become used to dealing with the expectation to win every time he pulls on an Aberdeen shirt. Now he aims to do the same with Scotland.
Attacking midfielder Christie has flourished during his loan spell at Pittodrie from Celtic, where he struggled for game time after making the move from home-town club Inverness in 2015.
Becoming a mainstay in Derek McInnes’ Dons, who are in next month’s Scottish Cup semi-finals and challenging for second place in the Premiership, has helped Christie catch the eye of new Scotland boss Alex McLeish, who has named him – along with fellow Dons Kenny McLean and Scott McKenna – in his squad for the friendly double-header against Costa Rica and Hungary.
Christie feels the pressure to perform at club level has helped his development, as he aims to make himself a fixture in McLeish’s squad that is aiming to end a 22-year wait to reach a major tournament by qualifying for Euro 2020.
Christie said: “I think probably one of the things at Aberdeen that’s helped me is having a pressure week in, week out, an expectation to win and having to deal with that.
“It’s something for an attacking player as well when people are looking at you to create something in the game and you have to be able to handle that as well.
“It’s just down to confidence. The manager at Aberdeen has been very good with me, he’s managed to keep my confidence really high going into every game.
“It doesn’t matter who we are playing, we can go out and show ourselves as the players we are.
“It’s times like this, getting selected for the international squad that it pays off and you can see it’s going the right way and we’re catching the eye of others, which is what we want to do.”
Christie made his name as an impressive young talent in a Caley Thistle side that defied the odds in 2015, lifting the Scottish Cup and finishing third in the Premiership to qualify for the Europa League.
The 23-year-old felt moving to more demanding surroundings was necessary in order for international recognition to come however, and he added: “In terms of Inverness it was a very good team, winning the cup and that almost came out of nowhere and it was a freak season for Inverness but at Aberdeen it’s a bit different, you’re expected to go for silverware and be at the top end of the table.
“When I was younger at Inverness I never really had that. So, that has definitely helped me, and to be churning out games for a team like Aberdeen is very good.
“It has definitely helped me as a player and it gives me more experience to step up to international level.”
Christie’s first taste of senior international football came in November when he made his debut from the start in a 1-0 friendly defeat to Holland at Pittodrie under interim manager Malky Mackay.
Having maintained his place in the squad, Christie feels the recognition vindicates his move to the Dons, which he initially made on a six-month deal in January 2017 before extending for the duration of this season in the summer.
He added: “All that was in my head when I first moved was to get playing football again and keep my head down. Ever since the national call-ups have come it’s been just a bonus – I’m obviously absolutely delighted.
“But I never thought at the start of the season it would get this far. I’m happy, and I feel it shows that I’ve made the right decision in going to Aberdeen on loan and I’m enjoying my time.”