Calvin Ramsay has kept rising to extreme footballing tests from the age of 12.
Now at one of Europe’s elite clubs, the new Liverpool teenager is being backed by Scotland Under-17 boss Brian McLaughlin to do so yet again and make an impact at Anfield.
Ramsay has finalised his stunning £8million move to Merseyside with terms all agreed between the player and the clubs.
Reds boss Jurgen Klopp has spotted enough massive potential in the 18-year-old to take him south to join Scotland skipper Andy Robertson.
But McLaughlin has seen that potential blossom since the talented youngster was just out of primary school.
As SFA JD Performance School manager, the former Celtic winger set down constant challenges to Ramsay.
Time and again the youngster met the mark, and McLaughlin says such progression can be maintained as he begins to start an exciting new chapter.
He said: “I first saw Calvin when he was 12.
“He came through our Performance School programme, so he would have started when he was 10 or 11.
“It’s very hard to select kids aged 11 and 12, but there are certain signs that you look for and he had those.
“One of the main things the head coaches are always tasked with is making sure the kids want to come back.
“Wee Calvin came back every single day whether he’d had a good day or a bad day.
“He’d always try to get better and towards the end of his four years between 12 and 16 you could see that his potential was starting to show.
“You saw Calvin growing slowly but surely, believing in himself and getting better.
“We managed to get him into our national squad system then which was a whole new challenge. But he was always trying to do what we were asking and the good thing about Calvin is that he has, and always had, a fantastic mentality.
“We always try, especially in youth games at the youngest age groups, to give them the hardest challenge – more physical than anything else.
“We almost know the challenge is possibly too far for some young players. But the idea is to keep developing them so they are ready for the A squad because the A squad is the only squad that matters.
“So we gave Calvin harder challenges. Sometimes we played him in midfield.
“We put him in certain areas to challenge him. He always stood up to it.
“Sometimes he hasn’t played well, and sometimes we have had to let him know that, and he’s had to take it on board.
“We are trying to play in a way that is in line with Europe. It is the only way you are going to get to be the best.
“It puts young players under pressure when they are on the ball. But that is how they learn.
“When they start finding their feet it’s up to the coaches to find the next challenge for them. That’s how they start to develop and you have got to keep believing in them.
“The challenges come and go and then you find the next challenge, and Calvin has been through all that.
“So, for me, once he settles in at Liverpool, he will have the right mentality and he will rise to the challenge.
“He will need to go down there and be patient but once he finds his feet, I think Calvin will do just great.”
Ramsay will, of course, have skipper Robertson at his side to offer guidance and inspiration and McLaughlin believes that will only help drive the rate of fresh progress.
He added: “I think that will be Calvin’s thought process.
“As soon as the deal was complete, Calvin would be thinking: I wouldn’t mind playing alongside Scotland’s captain.
“I have no doubt his next target after that will be to get into the Scotland squad.
“He will be looking at Nathan Patterson, one of his friends, and thinking: I need to do more to get ahead of him.
“He will be thinking he needs to do more to get ahead of Tony Ralston, who has been doing great recently. That is Calvin’s next challenge.
“Calvin will step up. He just needs to maintain the good habits he’s had since he was 12, believe in them, and he’ll come good.”
