Middlesbrough midfielder James Morrison has pledged his international future to Scotland.

He said: "The manager has been on the phone and I've said I've chosen to play for Scotland.

"My granddad and my grandma, George and Margaret, were Scottish and I was very close to them before they passed away. I'm hoping to make my family proud. There was a bit of doubt as to what I was going to do when Alex McLeish phoned me up. My nationality is English and I think I could play for them, but it's about whether I want to wait that long. England have got some great players, but hopefully I can help Scotland to do what they want to do.

"What won me over was the plans the manager has for Scotland and where they're going. The rankings show they are on the way up and with a few more players fitting in they can go even further.

"I think I'm going to play in the South Africa friendly. Hopefully I'll be a part of that. I'm really looking forward to pulling on the shirt. It's another step to international football and you can't beat that. In your career, to get an international cap is fantastic. It's very tight in the World Cup group, but if Scotland can beat France they can beat anyone. Hopefully, I can be a part of that."

Morrison has been capped by England all the way up to under-19 level and, a hero of the club's 2004 FA Youth Cup triumph who made his first-team debut aged only 17, he has already played almost 100 times for Middlesbrough.