Now Gary Caldwell is set to join his ultimate Hampden hero in Scotland’s gallery of greats.
Caldwell was given his first pro contract as a 16-year-old kid by King Kenny at Newcastle.
On Saturday the Wigan defender will stride proudly into the SFA’s Hall of Fame and take his place alongside him.
Caldwell, 30, will earn his 50th cap in the World Cup qualifier with Serbia.
The landmark occasion will see his portrait painted and hung at the home of the Scottish game — where his hero awaits.
Caldwell told SunSport: “It’s always meant a lot to me, playing for Scotland. To reach the 50-cap mark will be special.
“When you pull on the jersey once it’s a fantastic feeling and from then on you want more and more.
“As I’ve got nearer the number I’ve found myself thinking about what it would mean. I’ve looked at the list of players in the Hall of Fame and I’ve looked at the ones who aren’t there.
“It then hits home the kind of achievement it is.
“To put my name amongst such great players will be absolutely amazing. It will be the highlight of my career and something I’ll look back on in the years to come with tremendous pride.
“I’m talking about people like Kenny Dalglish. He signed me for Newcastle and when you think of Scotland players he is the one.
“But there are others like Gordon Strachan — my manager at Celtic — and Alex McLeish and Willie Miller. To have my picture up on the wall beside proper, genuine legends like that will be a really special feeling. It’s something no one would ever be able to take away.
“Football is all about opinions, but when you achieve things like this it goes beyond that.
“People can have any opinion they want, but they can’t alter the fact you’ve achieved something.”
Caldwell’s Scotland team-mates Kenny Miller and Darren Fletcher already have their portraits hanging at Hampden.
But joining King Kenny will have special meaning for Caldwell, given he was the first top boss to show faith in him.
He added: “Dalglish was the manager at Newcastle and he signed me at 16. He got sacked about three months later, right enough, although I don’t think I was to blame!
“Because of that I didn’t get to work with him closely, but he’s someone I have great respect for and still look up to.
“It was funny, actually, because he tried to sign me and my brother Steven for Blackburn when he was there years earlier. He came up to Scotland a few times with Alan Irvine to talk to us. They had meals with us, and my mum and dad, but we didn’t go.
“Steven had his heart set on Newcastle and went there. It was a few years later — when Kenny was in charge at St James’ Park — that I joined as well.
“But he’s a great man. The man you see on TV isn’t the way he is. My dad has seen him a few times down the years and he always remembers him and stops to have a chat.”
Like a lot of players who reach the top, Caldwell also knows how it feels to hit rock bottom.
He said: “I have played for Scotland at every level, but I never played for Newcastle and was released. They told me I wasn’t good enough for that level.
“The late Sir Bobby Robson was the manager at the time and I got on the bench a few times. I was nearly there.
“I was sent on loan a few times and eventually the day came when he pulled me into his office and told me it wasn’t going to happen for me at Newcastle.
“I was obviously disappointed at the time, but looking back, he was definitely right.
“He was a great man, someone I really looked up to and respected.
“Every player has ups and downs. It’s about being strong and handling that.
“Everyone wants to be a footballer, but it’s a difficult career, especially when you suffer some set-backs.
“You just need to believe in yourself and push on.
“It took me a long time to get back to the level I wanted to play at, but I got there.”
Caldwell is now one of the first names on Craig Levein’s team-sheet — the only question is where.
He was given the midfield holding role against Australia in last month’s Easter Road friendly, with Levein set to hand him the same job for the Serbia clash.
Caldwell added: “I enjoy that role, yeah, but if I keep playing in there I don’t think I’ll have many more games left in me!
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