Ally McCoist recalls the time he found Gazza in his kitchen

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Ally McCoist has made a real impression at Euro 2020 with his commentary and analysis. The Scotland legend has brought charisma, a sense of humour and expert insight to the table in a tournament which is shaping up to be a memorable one. McCoist is also synonymous with his time at Rangers, where he made over 400 appearances and scored 251 goals in his 15 years at the club. But his passionate support of the Scottish giants dragged him into a row with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in December.

At the time, Celtic had just been knocked out of the Betfred Cup after a 2-0 defeat at home to Ross County.

It was yet another poor result in a season full of disappointment, leading to anger from supporters.

Celtic fans descended on Parkhead, the area surrounding Celtic Park, calling for then-manager Neil Lennon to be sacked.

Following the incident, Ms Sturgeon said: “I don’t care if you’re a Celtic fan, a Rangers fan, an Ayr United fan or no fan of football at all.

“Anybody who attacks police officers is doing wrong and that is pretty despicable.

“I would say that across the board regardless of football or any other sporting affiliation.”

These comments infuriated McCoist, who questioned why Ms Sturgeon had brought Rangers into the discussion.

On talkSPORT, he said: “Getting back to Nicola, I don’t know what she was doing bringing Rangers and poor Ayr United into it, but that’s probably a topic for another discussion.”

Journalists and players were escorted from the stadium amid tense and ugly scenes, with two police officers injured during the unrest.

McCoist rarely speaks out on politics, but he did come out in support of the union in the 2014 Scottish independence vote.

He was among 16 former Scotland players who backed No, also including David Moyes and Alan Hansen.

They issued a joint statement through the Better Together organisation.

They said: “We are proud Scots who have been proud to represent our country around the world. When Scotland calls, we answer.

“We are proud that Scotland has always stood on its own two feet but we also believe that Scotland stands taller because we are part of the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is a country Scotland helped to build.

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“We urge every patriotic Scot to help maintain Scotland’s place in the United Kingdom which has served Scotland so well.”

Scottish Labour’s current leader Anas Sarwar praised the intervention of the footballers.

He said: “These men have played for the national team, have led Scotland and are now saying what they believe is best for Scotland. This shows that there is no shortage of passion and patriotism from those that are voting No.

“This isn’t a choice about whether Scotland is a nation or not, as these legends show, Scotland already is a proud nation.

“This is a choice of what vision we think is best for our future in Scotland and we believe that is solidarity, unity and teamwork.”

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