How Miller rose from grief to latest Serie A Scot

A "wee Champions League ball" is bouncing perfectly for Lennon Miller successful nan Aberdeen players' lounge.

Father Lee, past a striker astatine nan Pittodrie club, is blown distant by nan freakish method of his two-year-old boy erstwhile he "absolutely creams one" connected nan volley.

With nan shot mid-flight, his astonishment instantly turns to scary erstwhile nan woman of past Aberdeen head Jimmy Calderwood swings unfastened nan doorway to nan lounge pinch a solid of vino successful her hand.

Smash. Splash.

"She was soaking," Lee recalls. "We each conscionable stopped and were thinking, 'how's she going to respond to this?'. But she conscionable laughed it off."

At nan aforesaid age, nan erstwhile Scotland striker besides remembers his young boy oddly having nan knowledge to barren nan shot pinch his apical earlier taking a throw.

And by nan clip he was four, Udinese's newest signing was attempting corners connected 11-a-side pitches, moreover though he "couldn't deed nan 18-yard box".

Needless to say, shot was - and still is - young Miller's life, but his world was turned upside down astatine nan property of conscionable 5 pursuing nan nonaccomplishment of mother Donna, who died successful 2012 aft having cancer.

Now 18, and having go a talismanic fig astatine Fir Park, doing mum proud is what drives Miller, who has go Motherwell's grounds waste pinch his move to Italy.

"Going done that astatine specified a young age, shot has been my flight from specified a devastating thing," he told BBC Scotland successful 2024.

"I felt for illustration each clip I was successful nan location it was catching up connected maine and each clip I was retired connected nan transportation I forgot astir it.

"If I was upset I'd ever deliberation astir football, I'd talk to my dada astir football. It was conscionable my measurement of escaping it."

Despite his tender age, Miller played 76 times successful claret and amber.

He led retired Motherwell arsenic skipper astatine Hampden successful a Scottish League Cup semi-final conclusion by Rangers past November and he shone successful his first 2 outings for Scotland complete nan summer.

It was Miller's 91st-minute punishment against Dundee United that booked nan Fir Park broadside that semi-final spot, their first successful much than six years.

The infinitesimal referee John Beaton pointed to nan spot, dada Lee could hardly watch successful nan guidelines - not because he doubted his son, but alternatively because of his history of dinking penalties.

"I've ever had 1 successful my locker and I've ever enjoyed seeing nan goalie raging," nan teenage Miller joked.

"I've astir apt said to my dada earlier that if I get one, I'll dink it. But I've seen nan goalie spell early truthful I thought I'd time off it."

The truth personification truthful young would return nan punishment successful specified a high-pressure business says it each astir nan laidback mode successful which Miller plays nan game.

And it was that composed style that made him "stand retired for illustration a sore thumb" erstwhile Stuart Ogilvie, Motherwell's long-serving caput of academy recruitment, watched Miller for nan first clip pinch Cambusnethan Talbot boys club.

"He was spraying passes each complete nan place, moving nan crippled conscionable nan measurement he does now," says Ogilvie, who besides scouted erstwhile Scotland guardant James McFadden and ex-Celtic midfielder David Turnbull for Motherwell.

"I've been successful nan scouting crippled for 30 years and nan emotion I sewage erstwhile I watched Lennon was nan aforesaid arsenic erstwhile I watched James and David."

Ogilvie thought Motherwell's chance had gone erstwhile he learned Miller had been training pinch Celtic, 1 of galore clubs linked pinch nan teen earlier his move to Italy.

However, nan midfielder dropped retired of their academy aft emotion nan demands were "too overmuch unit astatine specified a young age".

Within weeks he was portion of Motherwell's younker set-up and quickly became "the talk of nan steamie" wrong nan coaching staff.

Throughout his accelerated development, nan determination was made for Miller to train and play pinch older property groups - thing nan midfielder feels only enhanced his expertise to "take nan shot nether pressure".

And distant from that, begetter Lee would moreover let his boy to train pinch Falkirk while he was their manager.

Interest from southbound of nan separator successful nan youngster was high, but 3 years later - six days aft his 16th day - Miller became nan youngest subordinate successful Motherwell history erstwhile he came connected successful a League Cup triumph complete Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

While he watched immoderate team-mates time off for academies of bigger clubs, Miller understood nan value of nan pathway location for him.

"That's each I wanted to do, play first-team football, because my dada told maine that's nan champion measurement of developing," Miller said.

"Moving connected and possibly not getting that, I thought that wasn't a bully idea. I didn't want to beryllium playing academy shot for nan remainder of my career."

That patience and understanding, erstwhile it mightiness person been easier to jump astatine a much lucrative academy statement elsewhere, has paid disconnected large time.

Despite a two-month wounded lay-off, Miller enjoyed a stellar breakthrough run successful 2023-24, playing 32 games successful a deep-lying midfield position.

His fearless expertise to return nan shot from nan defence and nexus play caught nan eye, but past play showed location are much strings to his bow.

Deployed successful a much precocious midfield domiciled for overmuch of nan campaign, he scored 4 goals and assisted eight, contempt missing six Premiership games successful early 2025 pinch a hairline ankle fracture.

He classed successful nan league's apical 10 for chance creation moreover pinch that spell connected nan sidelines, won nan astir fouls of immoderate subordinate successful nan section and won backmost possession nan second-most, down Celtic skipper Callum McGregor.

"It's wholly different to what I was playing," Miller said of his much precocious role. "It's taken clip to get utilized to and I'm reaping nan rewards now."

Even pinch nan pressures of first-team football, Miller's risk-taking remains.

There are acold much occasions erstwhile those risks do not salary off, but "there's nary constituent worrying what group think," he says. "Just reset, get nan shot back, and do it again".

But wherever does that mindset travel from?

Miller has ever been inspired by Kevin de Bruyne, but he feels nan nonaccomplishment of his mum, who ever wanted him to beryllium a footballer, has been a "massive factor".

After all, misplacing a walk is meaningless successful comparison to what he had to strengthen successful his early life. So "why not effort nan risky pass," he adds.

That gallus attack has helped him flourish.

Experienced Motherwell duo Andy Halliday and Paul McGinn person said Miller is nan champion youngster they person ever played with.

When you see Halliday trained pinch a teenage Billy Gilmour astatine Rangers, positive McGinn's younger relative is Aston Villa skipper John, nan comments are "obviously a immense honour".

Miller proved himself alongside Gilmour and McGinn astatine world level precocious and now has nan opportunity to radiance connected a caller shape astatine nine level successful Serie A.

One thing's for certain, he will backmost himself.

After Miller was included successful Steve Clarke's Scotland squad for nan first time, he told nan media: "I'm evidently not going to spell successful and beryllium nan champion subordinate there, but I judge I possibly could beryllium successful a mates of months.

"I deliberation that's really you request to deliberation arsenic a shot subordinate - you request to want to beryllium nan best."