For club and country, Scott McTominay is probably in the best form of his career right now.
His resurgence has been most clearly signalled by a huge increase in his goalscoring contributions, but it extends far beyond that.
McTominay partly attributes his improved performances to a discussion with Scotland manager Steve Clarke that led to a change in his mindset, as revealed in a recent interview with FourFourTwo.
- 'I have had enough of that rubbish. I see these boys and I think you're f*cking imposters. Forget the board for a second, who do you start pointing fingers at?' Roy Keane goes on explosive rant over Bruno Fernandes, as Ian Wright challenges him
- 'I sat with the club because I had an offer to leave. I asked if they see me as part of the future of the club, and they made it very clear that I would be a big part of this rebuild': Manchester United star reveals transfer discussions
"I was going through a bad patch with football, having not played as much at club level as I thought I might have. That frustration is normal and healthy, but a conversation with Steve Clarke around that time stuck in my head," said the midfielder.
"He just asked if I was OK. It sounds simple, but I don’t think anyone has asked me quite like that before. I told him that I was fine, and I genuinely thought I was, whereas he felt, with the way I was walking around and acting, that I wasn’t my normal, smiley self. I thought that was interesting and it definitely planted a seed."
At the time, McTominay was playing infrequently for Manchester United and struggling to find his rhythm at international level too. He needed a reset and Clarke's words provided it.
"He said I should think about football the way I did as a child – to get back to enjoying it for the purest of reasons. Why did I start kicking a ball around in the first place?
"I remember going back to my room and speaking to my parents and girlfriend about it. I thought he was bang on. In the next two games I scored four goals – it’s mad."
Those four goals, a brace each against Cyprus and Spain, got Scotland's Euro 2024 qualification campaign off to the perfect start.
That was the launch pad the Tartan Army needed to qualify for next summer's tournament, with McTominay leading the charge.
He finished the campaign with a remarkable seven goals from eight games, having scored just once for his country before this year.
"The manager made me feel so relaxed, because I knew he had my back. He isn’t the type to say much, because he doesn’t have to; what he does say is often impactful," continued McTominay.
"I give him full credit for how good I felt as that campaign got underway. The momentum from it has helped me so much."
More stories
Manchester City star RAGES over 'crazy' FIFA plan change – claiming players 'weren't consulted'
Ranked! The 100 best football players in the world: 2023
AFCON 2023: Dates, fixtures, squads, stadiums and everything you need to know
