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Shaun Maloney was assured yesterday that he has already played his way into contention for Scotland’s World Cup qualifying campaign after a splendid debut on his return to Celtic on Saturday.

George Burley, the Scotland manager, said that he had never forgotten about Maloney during his days with Aston Villa, adding: “The problem was he wasn’t playing at Villa. I was at the game \ on Saturday and Shaun was excellent, so he certainly comes back into my thoughts.

“It looks as if he has a new lease of life. He’s back playing, which is the important thing because if you are not playing, it is very difficult to maintain sharpness. He certainly looked sharp on Saturday. I am going to announce the squad on Wednesday and he comes into consideration.”

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Scotland play qualifiers against FYR Macedonia and Iceland next month and Maloney’s virtuoso performance on Saturday could not have come at a better time. His impact after coming on a as a first-half substitute for Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink was instant. He immediately won the free kick that led to Stephen McManus scoring Celtic’s opener, then laid on two goals for Georgios Samaras in the 3-0 win.