Aaron Hickey has been named in Scotland's squad for the opening World Cup qualifying matches after returning from serious hamstring injuries that sidelined him since October 2023. He has made two substitute appearances for Brentford this Premier League season and holds 14 caps for his country. Manager Steve Clarke confirmed Hickey is fit but stated the staff will manage his playing time given the lengthy recovery. Hickey made 39 appearances for Brentford since joining in 2022 and had a 659-day absence before his recent substitute outing. Several other players also return to international duty.
"He's good to go," said Clarke. "Whether he's good to go 90 minutes over two games is a different conversation. We'll manage him. "He's been a long time out injured, and it was a difficult recovery process. "He's a big player for us. It's up to everybody to manage him properly. We'll do that."
The 22-year-old has made two appearances off the bench in Brentford's first games of the Premier League season, having not featured since October 2023 following a run of serious hamstring injuries. Hickey, who has been capped 14 times by his national side, was selected for an away double-header against Denmark and Belarus as Scotland's World Cup qualifying campaign commences.
Hickey has made 39 appearances since joining the Bees from Bologna in the summer of 2022, but he was out of action for 659 days before coming on as a substitute in the 88th minute during Brentford's 3-1 away defeat to Nottingham Forest.
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