Everton defender Nathan Patterson made his long-awaited return to senior action with a late cameo during Scotland's 3-0 victory over Cyprus in their opening Euro 2024 qualifier on Saturday afternoon.
The 21-year-old has been sidelined since sustaining a knee injury in the 4-1 home defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion in January but has made a handful of appearances for the Blues' U21s during that time as part of his recovery - with the most recent of those outings coming during the 1-0 Premier League 2 defeat to Crystal Palace on March 5.
And with Scotland 1-0 up against their Group A counterparts after 79 minutes at Hampden Park, Patterson was given his first senior run out since January 3 as he replaced Brentford defender Aaron Hickey for the final 11 minutes of the contest.
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During his time on the pitch, Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay bagged a quick-fire brace, adding to John McGinn's first-half strike, to ensure Steve Clarke's side's hopes of qualifying for back-to-back European Championships were boosted by an emphatic victory on home soil.
Speaking prior to Patterson's call-up to the Tartan Army squad for the Euro 2024 qualifiers double-header, Everton manager Sean Dyche admitted the right-back was progressing nicely after he added 70 minutes to his resume with a steady performance against PSV Eindhoven in the 3-0 Premier League International Cup defeat at the start of March.
"Patto [Patterson] is a little bit behind but he played 70 minutes last night," said Dyche. "(James) Garner is a little bit closer."
Next up for Scotland and Patterson is the visit of Spain to Hampden Park on Tuesday night, before the youngster will return to Finch Farm ahead of Everton's Premier League home clash with Tottenham Hotspur on April 3.
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