Steve Archibald took his goalscoring exploits from Aberdeen to the English top flight and sees no reason why Sam Cosgrove cannot do the same.
Ex-Dons hitman Archibald earned a move to Tottenham Hotspur in 1980, thanks to his 29 goals in 76 games in the red of Aberdeen.
Cosgrove has taken up the mantle of the club’s goalscorer-in-chief after a frustrating start to life in the Granite City. It took him eight months to get off the mark but the Englishman has since hit 37 in 70 for Derek McInnes’ side.
Archibald also later went on to play for Barcelona, alongside the likes of Gary Lineker and Mark Hughes, and reckons Cosgrove has what it takes to make the same impact he did.
He said: “Why not? Sam is knocking in goals for fun with Aberdeen. The key is scoring goals – if you are scoring goals in the Scottish top flight that is all he can do. He is doing that.
“I am certain scouts from down south will be watching Cosgrove and keeping a sharp eye on him. If he continues to score goals for Aberdeen then why not. It is not like Aberdeen are a stepping stone but it is the nature of the beast.
“People come in with big offers and the club will have to accept it. That is just how Aberdeen is at this moment in time. That is fine because they will have someone else coming through. It is important that if they sell they have someone coming through to take the place of Sam Cosgrove.”
The Dons have seen Ryan Fraser and Kenny McLean leave the club to become Premier League players in England, albeit joining clubs who later went on to get promoted into the top tier. While Scottish football has taken a hit of lit, Archibald believes there is quality enough there to attract Premier League clubs.
He added: “You need to have a little bit of luck as well with who you are managed by and who your team-mates are. My team-mates were demanding as well. They were also quality, hard working and then you respond to that.
“Once you have that little bit of confidence you try to build yourself and force yourself through to get better. There is no reason why that cannot happen again. Scottish football is a little bit in the doldrums right now but is maybe getting a bit better.
“There have always been terrific Scottish players and there will be more coming through. The potential is there and why can’t there be another player that goes from Scotland to England and then abroad whether it is Spain or Italy.”
The 63-year-old, who also scored four times in 27 games for Scotland and played for Hibernian, Espanyol and St Mirren, used the Dons’ very own “King of the Beach End” Joe Harper as his goalscoring inspiration at Pittodrie.
Archibald said: “At Aberdeen, when I went there I scored goals. I looked around to see who was in the team and if I could do as well as him. In Aberdeen’s case it was Joe Harper. I looked at Joe’s ability and looked at mine and thought maybe I can do that.
“I started scoring goals and thought well I can do that. Then you get transferred and you look around and think again can I do that? Then all of a sudden you are doing it.
“You go into these clubs with a little trepidation but then you are running and scoring goals and off and flying. Then you get better and move to the next one. It is levels – you just keep improving. It is a question of improving.”