THE call came through just as he had promised.

When Oli McBurnie shot to prominence as a teenage talent at Valley Parade, he joked that the Telegraph & Argus would get his first interview as a full international.

Four years on, and true to his word, McBurnie phoned from the Scotland team hotel ahead of their flight to Budapest for tonight’s friendly in Hungary.

Newly-capped after leading the line in Friday’s defeat against Costa Rica, the Premier League striker had not forgotten his football roots.

His links with his Bantams past extend to a regular group chat with former team-mates – a source of valuable advice for the 21-year-old during his rapid rise into the spotlight.

“There are a few of the boys and we talk all the time,” said McBurnie.

“There’s me, Billy Clarke, Aaron Mclean, Billy Knott, Alan Sheehan and Yeatesy (Mark Yeates). None of us are at Bradford anymore but we still keep in contact.

“They all sent a message to me after the game on Friday saying how proud they were.

“It’s good having those older figures to talk to. Whenever I make a big decision in football, I will always speak to them for their opinion.

“Most of them have been there and done it all and have no loyalties to anyone. They only think about what will be best for me.

“It’s nice to have that clear perspective outside my family, agent and whatever. It’s just people in football who might have been in a similar situation and can pass on that advice.

“They might have had good experiences or bad but it helps me to make the right decisions.

“When I was going on loan, for example, I was speaking to a few of the boys about what they thought I should do and it’s paid off for the better.”

The successful loan spell from Swansea at Barnsley has catapulted McBurnie into the thinking of Alex McLeish. Six goals in eight starts in a side battling to beat the drop in the Championship convinced the new Scotland boss he is worth a shot on the big stage.

It is a long way from the days as a callow teenager when he was first thrown into senior action in a City shirt by Phil Parkinson.

But McBurnie believes that tough start – he never scored for the Bantams – gave him a valuable grounding for his progress up the ladder to a full international bow.

He added: “It’s gone so quick but feels so long ago at the same time.

“I was a completely different person back then, never mind different player.

“But it not only helped me as a player but mentally as well.

“I learned what it was like to go out there in front of big crowds and play against big teams. When I wasn’t performing well, it was taking the criticism at the same time.

“Being thrown in at the deep end and having to deal with people saying ‘he’s not good enough’ or ‘he’s never going to make it.’

“As a 17-year-old, that definitely strengthens you mentally and I believe it’s stood me in good stead for where I am now.”

But McBurnie has never lacked for self-confidence or inner-belief.

Just as he did not wilt under the public pressure of being thrust into the muck and bullets of League One, there were no butterflies when he strode out at Hampden with the weight of a country behind him.

“I tried to take it in my stride and didn’t really have time for it to sink in during the actual moment.

“It was only when I was sat in my room afterwards that it hit me that I’d started for my country.

“It’s more of your family’s reaction when you see how big it is.

“Six were there, which was quiet for me, but it was on TV as well so others managed to grab it on there.

“But as you can imagine, my phone’s been going mad. I was quite popular over the weekend.

“You know I’ve got a lot of confidence in myself.

“Obviously there are times when you doubt yourself, but if you said by the time I was 21 I’d have made my full debut in the Premier League and as an international, I’d have snapped your hand off.

“It’s testament to the people I’ve had around me. There are a lot I owe thanks to.

“They won’t let me get ahead of myself. It’s the old saying in football, never get too high when things are good or too low when they’re bad.”