"I was surprised.." Sheffield Wednesday man opens up on Euro 2020 heartbreak, vows to bounce back
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The full-back narrowly missed out on selection for Scotland’s Euro 2020 squad and during their 0-0 draw with England at Wembley acted as a radio pundit for TalkSport.
Palmer was a shock omission from Steve Clarke’s squad, having been selected for every squad throughout qualifying.
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Hide AdSpeaking ahead of the match, he opened up for the first time about the experience and admitted he had expected to be included, particularly after UEFA extended the number of players permitted in each squad from 23 to 26.
“I’m not going to lie, it was a bit of a surprise to be honest,” Palmer said.
“Initially it was a missed call from him, the day before the announcement. You kind of know it’s not good news from that.
“I text him before the game on Monday [vs Czech Republic] that I went up to watch, he replied saying he appreciated the message, I spoke to a few of the boys who said they were missing me in camp which was nice.”
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Hide AdPalmer is a lifelong Owls fan and is Wednesday’s longest serving player and explained how he received the news from Clarke that he would not feature in Scotland’s first major tournament in 23 years.
But the 29-year-old has vowed to bounce back from the disappointment.
“I’m obviously gutted,” he said. “It’s one of those things, Steve Clarke called me and explained he had some big decisions to make.
“That’s the nature of football, you can go either way, to use that as fuel to bounce back and be ready when called upon again. There are World Cup qualifiers coming up so hopefully I can continue my journey with Scotland.
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Hide Ad“For me, it’s been a privilege to be involved, that night in Serbia is one that will obviously live long in the memory to be involved over there.
“I’m proud to know these players and know the Scotland boys and have a lot of them as friends now.”