Scott McTominay scores again as Scotland down Cyprus 3-0 in UEFA Euro Qualifying 2024 | OneFootball

He just can’t stop scoring.

Scott McTominay looks like a man reborn every time he puts on the Scotland jersey and that was on display again against Cyprus.

The Manchester United midfielder scored with a poacher’s finish against Cyprus to lead his team to a 3-0 victory in the UEFA Euro Qualifying 2024 fixture. This was his sixth goal in five games, a remarkable return from midfield.

With this goal, he is now the joint-top scorer in qualifying fixtures, alongside former United man Romelu Lukaku and current United prodigy, Rasmus Hojlund.

Scotland have won all five games, leading the Group A standings over the likes of Spain and Norway, mainly due to McTominay’s world-class scoring exploits.

It has been a different scenario for the midfielder at club level, however.

He has been ignored to such an extent that Gary Neville recently opined that Erik ten Hag was subtly forcing him out of the club.

The midfielder was the subject of a bid from West Ham United in the summer but it didn’t meet United’s demands and the move was swiftly quashed.

However, Ten Hag has barely looked towards the Scotsman in United’s fixtures so far.

McTominay has played just seven minutes of Premier League football in United’s four games so far. That is despite injuries to Mason Mount and Kobbie Mainoo.

Their return will push the player further down the pecking order, leaving his Scotland exploits as a break from his underwhelming time at the club.

At the international level, he is mainly used as a box-crashing central midfielder which makes the best use of his anticipation and finishing skills.

Shoehorned as a specialist defensive midfielder at club level, he looks cowered by the responsibilities of being an orchestrator, leaving his best skills to rust.

If he keeps up his world-class displays for Scotland, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see another club throw the bag at United to secure his services.

Perhaps that would be the best-case scenario for everyone involved.