HE is, despite his high-profile status, still only 22 and has played fewer than 70 games of senior football in his life to date. But Scott McTominay has been no stranger to adversity during his embryonic professional career. Quite the opposite in fact.

The Manchester United and Scotland midfielder has needed to overcome his fair share of troubling setbacks and deal with a series of significant challenges over the years. The 6ft 4in player has taken the considerable difficulties he has encountered with both club and country in recent weeks in his sizeable stride as a result.

McTominay, who is hoping to be restored to the national team’s starting line-up in the Euro 2020 qualifier against San Marino this evening after missing the wretched 4-0 defeat to Russia in Moscow on Thursday evening due to a suspension, has no shortage of self-belief and an abundance of mental fortitude.

The Lancaster-born player, who spent a season on the sidelines when he was a teenager due to a sudden adolescent growth spurt and a succession of debilitating injuries, has certainly been hurt by the poor performances and disappointing defeats which both United and Scotland have suffered in recent weeks as well as the fallout to them.

Yet, he appreciates from his personal experiences that the way to come through dark periods and silence the critics is quite simply by performing well and winning matches. He is confident he can do both and help to lift the mood around both Old Trafford and Hampden. He has done so before.

“There is pressure whatever league you’re playing in or level you’re playing at,” he said. “It is down to how you handle that. You have to deal with the pressure it in a positive way. You can’t take too much notice of what’s being said elsewhere. We have to concentrate on the pitch and that’s what I’m thinking about.

“People on the TV always have an opinion, you have to take it with a pinch of salt. The manager and your own players are what’s important. You have to keep your head up, because as soon as your head drops, then it gets twice as difficult.

“It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, when you’re going through a bad period you have to accept it and look forward and that’s what we’re trying to do in the camp.”

McTominay added: “No-one has drilled that into me. It has always been a way of life. When I was 18 I didn’t play too many games, I was always injured. I had groin pains, things like that, so I had the experience of real lows of football.

“In the future you can always look back to that moment and think it was bad then, but now you are playing for Man United and Scotland so you have to be grateful for the opportunities you have been given as well.

“I feel like that mental strength comes naturally as well from the experiences I have had and hopefully I can pass it on to team mates at club level and hopefully at international level as well.

“I wasn’t ever down you know. I was always positive mentally from my family always pushing me to keep going, keep going. Hard works always does catch up eventually with perfect timing. I have seen that with different things that have happened at club and international level and hopefully it continues.”

McTominay, who qualifies to play for Scotland because his father hails from Helensburgh, is grateful for the constant backing he has received from his family throughout the low periods and is hoping he can give them something to cheer about this evening.

“They will be there tomorrow night, they are always here,” he said. “My mum, dad, sister will be there and some family from Scotland as well. Wherever I go, they go, which is always nice.

“You want do well in front of your family. The sacrifices they have given me over the last 15 years have been incredible. I would not be sat in this chair now if it wasn’t for my family.”

McTominay, who picked up bookings in both of the Group I matches against Belgium, didn’t travel to Russia this week. He admitted watching his team mates slump to their second successive 4-0 defeat in the Luzhniki Stadium without him hadn’t made for pleasant viewing. But he has no doubts they too are strong characters who can recover from the experience.

“For sure, otherwise they would not be doing so well at their clubs,” he said. “This is the international stage and we have to have more of that. Confidence not arrogance, you have to be prepared to go on the pitch and do yourself justice and then if everyone does that then the team does well.

“We have to push that reset button and get to that stage where we have got a happy, positive camp. Even by just coming in today and having a good training session the atmosphere does get lifted. Then you never know what can happen.

“We are all experienced enough now to realise that whenever you are in a bad period you have to dig in and stick tight. That has been discussed with the players and the management and it is something we are looking to improve upon.

“You can’t put your finger on what the cause has been on the night when you haven’t been there. What I’m looking forward to is coming back and trying to put my stamp on it.”

McTominay may be a regular starter for one of the biggest clubs on the planet, but he has plenty of competition for places in central midfield in the Scotland squad. John Fleck, the Sheffield United player who made his debut in Russia, is another player who is now vying for a start in his position. But he believes he has much to offer his manager Steve Clarke and can perform a variety of roles for the national team.

“I’m very versatile, whether I’m No.6 and a pivot or a No.8 going box-to-box and scoring goals,” he said. “It’s a healthy headache for the manager to have with the midfield options we have in the squad. That can only benefit us going forward into the more important matches. Whatever team the manager picks, you have to be ready to come in.”

The Anglo Scot has grown accustomed to appearing in front of massive crowds in some of the game’s greatest arenas at home and abroad since establishing himself as a Manchester United player. So playing San Marino in a stadium that will only be around a fifth full tonight will be an unusual experience for him. But he is untroubled by the prospect.

“I’ve not really thought about that,” he said. “The fans are incredible when they turn up, the support’s amazing. All we ask is that they stay behind us through good moments and bad moments.

“It’s up to us to try and lift that and bring more fans in. Hopefully we’ll all come together. It’s difficult at times, but we’re hoping for some rewarding moments in March.”

McTominay is focusing fully on ensuring Scotland can halt their four game losing streak and go into the Euro 2020 play-offs next year on a run of good form, not what has happened previously.

“The manager has told us our objectives are in front of us,” he said. “We have to forget the last four games, even though it’s been difficult and we haven’t picked up good results. The aim is to do well in the next three games and finish third in the group. That’s vitally important.

“Come March we want to be in a positive frame of mind and have a positive atmosphere around the group. There is everything to look forward to. We have to be disappointed about the results before, but when you are in camps there is always the next game of football to look forward to.

“That is so important. You can forget bad results. It’s an industry where you can forget bad results very quickly and move on from them. We have the quality.”