Leeds United loan star Joe Rothwell tipped for shock Scotland call-up after impressive Rangers debut
Joe Rothwell has made a positive early impression since joining Rangers in a permanent transfer this summer.
Leeds United 2024/25 loan star Joe Rothwell has been tipped for a surprise Scotland call-up by former teammate Charlie Mulgrew, following a fast start to life at Rangers.
Rothwell signed a three-year contract at Ibrox earlier this summer following the conclusion of his season-long loan spell at Leeds. The midfielder was an unsung hero of Daniel Farke’s title-winning squad, providing much-needed energy in midfield and producing some crucial assists.
Rangers’ 2025/26 season got underway earlier this week with a 2-0 first-leg Champions League qualifying win over Panathinaikos and Rothwell impressed on his competitive debut. The 30-year-old showed much the same skillset he did at Leeds, darting forward into space and getting the Ibrox crowd off their seats.
Rothwell’s performance drew praise from former Blackburn Rovers teammate Charlie Mulgrew, who is best known for his lengthy spell at Rangers’ Old Firm rivals Celtic. And Mulgrew also revealed the Manchester-born former Leeds loanee could be in line for an international call-up - albeit not with England.
“Somebody that I think is going to do really good for Rangers, Joe Rothwell, great signing,” Mulgrew told GoRadio, as quoted by Glasgow World. “Somebody I played with at Blackburn.
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“Very good dribbler, midfielder, can beat people and eliminate people in the midfield area plus dribble through. Yeah, very unique type of player and he can play for Scotland as well. I don't know if a lot of people know that, but he qualifies for Scotland.
“I think Alex McLeish was going to call him up a few years ago when I was at Blackburn with him and something, I don't know what happened, I don't know if Joe got injured or something happened, but it didn't quite happen. But I think he would be a real asset for Scotland as well. I think he's a top player, Joe.”
Joe Rothwell tipped for shock Scotland call-up
A late-career international call-up for Rothwell would be just rewards for his efforts at Leeds, where he will always be remembered for twice assisting Pascal Struijk as Farke’s side came from 1-0 down to beat Sunderland 2-1 in February. The dynamic midfielder often came on to change games for his side, with those forward-thinking runs unsettling defences and opening up space elsewhere.
Leeds opted against pursuing a permanent move for Rothwell this summer, with the clear focus being to improve physicality levels in midfield. The Whites have since spent a combined £32million on Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach, the pair joining Ethan Ampadu, Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka in the middle of the park.
Rothwell could end up following a similar path to former Leeds teammate Karl Darlow, who made his international debut aged 33 in September. The Northampton-born goalkeeper is eligible to represent Wales due to his grandfather, Ken Leek, who also represented the nation back in the 1950s.
Darlow has taken his international opportunity with both hands and might well be considered first-choice under Craig Bellamy, having claimed six more caps following that September debut. The experienced shot-stopper also took over from Illan Meslier for Leeds’ crucial Championship promotion run-in and remained unbeaten in seven games.