Future is bright for Scotland Women, says goalkeeper Lee Gibson after earning 50th cap

Scotland Women goalkeeper Lee Gibson believes the future is bright for the national team thanks to the young talent coming through the ranks.

Gibson earned her 50th cap on Tuesday night in the 1-1 draw against Belgium at Hampden, where Scotland salvaged a first Uefa Nations League point with a last-minute equaliser.

The Glasgow City goalkeeper claimed the assist for the leveller as her free-kick at the death was headed home by Sophie Howard in the 94th minute.

It was a night to remember for Gibson, who made her Scotland debut in 2017, as she marked the individual milestone and entered the hall of fame.

When asked how she thinks the squad have progress during the time she has been involved with the national team, Gibson’s response suggests the future is bright.

Scotland’s Lee Gibson: ‘We are more than capable’

The goalkeeper said: “This squad is worthy of qualifying for the next Euros and the World Cup in the next few years.

“We’ve got a lot of youth that has come through. Kirsty Maclean came on (against Belgium) and I thought some of the balls she played through were perfect.

“You want to have those players coming in and slotting in as if they’ve been here for a long time.

“We’ve had injuries this camp and obviously we didn’t have Erin (Cuthbert) at the start, but we are more than capable. That’s why we have a big squad and we need everyone.

“We’ve shown on Friday (2-1 defeat to England) that we can compete with the best and we’re disappointed tonight to only come away with a draw – again that shows the progression, but it also shows we still have a little bit to go.

“The young players can go all the way. You look at Emma Watson, Kirsty Maclean and how easy a transition it has been for them to step into the first team.

“We’ve seen them play really well for Rangers – and now Emma has moved on to Manchester United, but the pathways are obviously working and the youth systems are bringing players through.  If you’re good enough, you’re old enough for me.

““Its nice to see, not to look at their age though as it makes me feel a lot older than I am! But seriously, they’ve been excellent.”

Nations League campaign can put Scotland ‘on the map’

After their opening two Nations League matches, Gibson believes there are plenty of positives for Scotland to build on in the next round of fixtures.

Scotland sit bottom of Group A1 with one point and face the Netherlands, who beat the Lionesses on Tuesday night, in a home and away double-header in late October.

Gibson said: “It’s another opportunity for us to come together and put Scotland on the map.

“For us being in pot A in this Nations League group, a lot of people would have thought ‘that’s just Scotland’, but hopefully now we have got the respect from the other teams and they know we’re more than capable of beating anyone on our day.

“When it comes down to competition football performances can be good, but ultimately you have to get the job done on the night.

“We’ve shown over the last nine months how far we’ve come. We still have a bit of progress to go, but for the next games there is no reason why we can’t go out and compete, first and foremost, and win those games.

“We’ve went toe-to-toe with England, who of course were finalists at the World Cup, and on another night we could have taken more out of it.

“We need to see the positives, how far we have come, the things we’re doing well and how we can change those small margins to make sure games go our way.”