James Penrice Hopeful of a Scotland Call-Up, but Not Yet; Breaks Silence

Scottish left-back James Penrice has finally broken his silence on his exclusion from the Scotland National Football Team squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures. 

According to a report by media outlet The Scottish Sun, the 27-year-old full-back, who has recently joined Rangers on loan from Greek club AEK Athens, has impressed since his debut for the Scottish side, especially in their last two Old Firm derbies. In the Premier Sports Cup victory that Rangers registered over arch-rivals Celtic F.C., Penrice impressed fans by starring in a midfield role when he was tasked with man-marking Benjamin Nygren. The left-back was largely successful in the role he was tasked with.

These performances, however, did not prove enough to convince Scotland manager Sebastien Pocognoli to call up Penrice for the UEFA Nations League fixtures. The defender missed out on two consecutive opportunities to be a part of the squad when he was not named either in the initial squad for the games against Slovenia, North Macedonia and Switzerland, or as a replacement for Kieran Tierney, who withdrew from the squad on Tuesday. The Belgian manager decided to not call up any replacement for the left-back currently playing for Celtic.

When asked about his exclusion from the squad, Penrice said that although he was hopeful of a national team call-up after his recent performances, he was not expecting it outright. The defender said, “Was Scotland on my horizon? No, not for me. I was focusing on just coming back to Scotland and trying to enjoy my football.”

Penrice further added, “It’s been a mental couple of weeks, so Scotland hasn’t really taken up my focus.”

The player, however, accepted that playing for Scotland one day would be a dream come true; it will be a “bucket list item to tick off”.

As said by the player himself, his current focus is on delivering good performances for his club, which he believes will propel his chances of being called up to the national team in the future. He also said that a club of the stature of Rangers must be a team composed of several international players, adding, “ I want to join that, and I want to play for my country, so hopefully it happens in the future.”

A graduate of the academy of Scottish club Partick Thistle, the left-back appeared in 84 league fixtures for the senior squad of the club before moving permanently to fellow Scottish side Livingston. He then played 77 league games for Livi before moving to Heart of Midlothian, and then to his current club, AEK Athens. Over the course of his career, Penrice has also played on loan for a season each for East Fife and Livingston. He joined Rangers in 2026, again on a loan deal, with an option to buy.

It will be interesting to see whether James Penrice gets called up by Sébastien Pocognoli in the future. However, for the time being, the player must wait to get his chance to show his mettle on the international stage.