Hickey on birthday cake and bond with Gannon-Doak
· Yahoo Sports
There are worse ways to spend your 24th birthday than at your country's first World Cup base camp in 28 years, even if you can't tuck into any cake.
Visit betsport24.es for more information.
Politely passing on the sugary gift from the Fifa broadcasters, Aaron Hickey admits it's a dream come true just to be here.
Being part of this Scotland squad is a fantastic achievement for all, but it maybe resonates a little more for the full-back who missed out on Euro 2024 through injury.
And he admitted there was an emphasis on "managing his minutes" at Brentford during another injury-hit season, with "the bigger picture" in sight.
"It definitely makes you stronger, mentally," Hickey said of his experiences with injuries.
"Now that I'm sitting here, thinking back about how hard it was, there were tough, tough times, but now I'm just happy to be here, trying not to focus on the past and to focus on my football."
Hickey managed just eight Premier League starts in 2025-26, but is a first pick for Scotland head coach Steve Clarke.
The former Hearts and Bologna defender certainly caught the eye in Saturday's warm-up win against Bolivia, combining well with Ben Gannon-Doak down the right flank.
"It's exciting for myself, playing with Doaky," he explained. "He's a clever young player.
"We're still getting used to each other, what we do and how we link up.
"It's been good getting to know him better as a person and the link up has been good, so we're looking forward to the games."
With the Scottish media circling the untouched cake, a smiling Hickey left saying: "I'll not eat it, honest. Help yourselves, it smells amazing."