What can Scotland fans expect to see from Jacob Brown?

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Earlier this week, Jacob Brown was called up to the Scotland squad by manager Steve Clarke after a fantastic start to the season with Stoke City.

Jacob Brown signed for the Potters in September 2020 as he went on to make 41 league appearances scoring five goals. This season, a rejuvenated Brown has seen him clock four goals and four assists and is showing no signs of slowing down.

The Scot can score with both feet and his head alongside creating his own goal-scoring opportunities as seen in his superb solo strike away at Sheffield United last month.

Fluent in attacks, Brown’s blistering pace can see him tear defences apart, something West Bromwich Albion failed to cope with as he ran the Baggies ragged and was unlucky not to hit the target.

The hard-working, athletic striker has been undroppable from Michael O’Neill’s side this season, appearing in every game in the league and the Carabao Cup, as his keen and deadly eye for goal has been crucial for the Potters.

Brown’s athleticism saw him nod home an equaliser against Huddersfield in September as he leapt high to powerfully head home Mario Vrancic’s corner before the midfielder forced the Terriers into an own goal which saw the Potters walk away 2-1 victors.

His energy, endurance and versatility have seen him be compared by Stoke supporters to former City fan favourite Jonathan Walters, who was crucial to Tony Pulis’ side in the 2010s, and his absence from the club was felt when Stoke suffered relegation in 2018.

Michael O’Neill’s process of reshaping the club’s culture can be proven by signings like Brown, who has a positive impact on his teammates on and off the pitch.

Brown has an eye for detail in his play and even spent large parts of the off-season in the gym preparing for the new season which is certainly paying off.

Last weekend’s 3-3 draw against Cardiff City was Brown’s most prolific game of the season. A goal and two assists saw the Potters score three goals for the third time in the 2021/22 league campaign.

Brown was ready to pounce early on as Ben Wilmot flighted a pinpoint cross which was nodded in by the Scotsman from close range.

His impressive hold-up play mustn’t be ignored either, something Steven Fletcher benefited from as he scored twice thanks to the 23-year-old’s smart play. After Harry Souttar caressed a cross-field ball to the feet of the young Scotsman, Brown knocked the ball back to his experienced compatriot who fired the Potters 2-0 up.

Brown also provided the assist for Stoke’s third by knocking the ball back to Fletcher who hit a curling effort in the second half.

Stoke boss O’Neill has nothing but praise for Brown who continues to flourish game by game.

“When you play with two strikers then he’s a joy to play with because he covers so much ground, he’s so honest in terms of his play and his link-up play is improving all the time.

“He’s just a nightmare for defenders, to be honest, because he has great physicality. Not only does he have great speed and strength, but he has endurance. It’s rare to find a player with all three qualities.

“Jacob [Brown] is going to continue to get better. He works very, very hard. He’s an extremely diligent lad and he needs to continue to just polish up his game.”

Brown will hope to kick-start his international career in style as Scotland face Moldova before hosting Denmark at Hampden Park in crucial World Cup qualifiers next week.

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