Exclusive:From Aberdeen to Sweden: The 20y/o Scotland striker bidding to become next Robbie Ure
The Aberdeen academy graduate who swapped Pittodrie for Uppsala is hoping Sweden can provide the same platform for his own Scotland breakthrough
There is something faintly improbable about Finlay Neat’s footballing education.
Born in Scotland and developed in Aberdeen’s youth academy, he grew up dreaming of representing his country, playing at a World Cup and building a career at his hometown club.
Yet his peculiar road has led not through the familiar corridors of Pittodrie, but across the North Sea and into Sweden.
Now 20, Neat is seeking to establish himself as a senior striker with IK Sirius in Uppsala, a club that has become an unlikely launchpad for Scottish talent. Former team-mate Robbie Ure offered striking proof of that, earning a big-money move to La Liga side Sevilla on a contract until 2031 after a breakthrough spell in the historic university town of Uppsala.
Ure’s departure offers Neat both inspiration and opportunity. His ambition is to follow a similarly unconventional route towards a dream he has held since childhood: playing for Scotland, albeit he has yet to represent the national team at any level.
“Hopefully, that would be amazing,” Neat grins when asked by The Scotsman about a possible future Neat-Ure strike partnership for Scotland. “That's the biggest dream there is for me. My ultimate goal in football is to play for my country.”
A move that changed everything
Aberdeen remains home for Neat. He joined the club’s youth system aged seven and progressed alongside the likes of Findlay Marshall, Dylan Lobban and Alfie Bavidge. He retains fond memories and a deep affection for the city and club that gave him his start in football.
Then, at 13, everything changed.
In February 2019, his father, a marine biologist, accepted a job in Malmö. The family moved almost immediately. For a teenager thriving at Hazlehead Academy, surrounded by friends and playing well for Aberdeen, it was a major adjustment.
“It came totally out of the blue,” he recalls. “I was in S2 at high school at the time. He sat us all down and said there was an opportunity to move out there. From not thinking about anything to basically my whole life changing, especially at that age and leaving behind all my mates.”
He had little choice in the matter, but could control what came next.
Through his Aberdeen connection Gavin Levy, Neat was introduced to Malmö’s academy. He spent the next six years in the city, developing as a footballer while adapting to a new country.
The first year or two were difficult, and he initially could not speak Swedish. Eventually, he immersed himself in the culture and moved into Swedish-language education. Gradually, he picked up the language and is now fluent, giving him a sense of belonging in a country that had once felt entirely foreign.
The first year or two socially were difficult. He could not initially speak Swedish, but gradually immersed himself in the culture and became fluent during time spent in an international school.
“Learning the language opened up a whole new perspective to life in Sweden,” he says. “You eventually get the gist of things. Malmo really helped and gave me the platform to show what I could do. Everyone was really kind and supported me.”
From utility man to striker
Another transformation was taking place on the pitch. Neat had played in various positions, making the idea of him becoming a centre-forward seem unlikely. Then, towards the end of 2024, he was deployed as a striker for the first time. After scoring a second-half hat-trick against Danish side FC Nordsjælland, the experiment began to look like a career path.
“Last season was definitely my best year to date,” he states. “I managed to overcome a back injury that was troubling me for about 18 months and I started playing as a number nine, a position that I’d never played before. Things just really exploded at the end of 2024.”
The goals kept coming. Neat became captain of Malmö’s Under-19s and one of the division’s leading forwards, ending the campaign as its striker of the year. When time came to leave Malmö, it was Sirius who offered something beyond another contract.
“They were the one team that had the most concrete plan for me and were the most inspiring to me,” he says. “I just felt it was the right move. In terms of the academy system, I’d say there’s a lot more focus on the individual development and quality in Sweden compared to Scotland. The football is maybe a bit more technical here.”
Neat joined Sirius in July 2025 and soon made his professional debut. His transition to senior football has been more gradual than his Under-19 breakthrough, with three senior league appearances last season.
Now on loan at Norrby IF in Sweden’s second tier for the remainder of the campaign, Neat’s focus is simple. “The decision was mostly centred around getting more game time and to experience football in a league below the Allsvenskan. It’s been good so far and the standard is pretty similar. Hopefully I can make my mark here.”
The Robbie Ure effect
If Neat required evidence that a Scottish player could take an unconventional route to the top, he found it in former Sirius hitman and now twice-capped Scotland international Ure.
The former Rangers man became somewhat of a footballing reference point, helping Neat understand how to handle defenders, protect the ball better and make decisions in key areas of the pitch.
His rise has been remarkable since leaving Ibrox without establishing himself in their first team. He flourished in Sweden, netting 15 times in his first 15 appearances earlier this season. Neat has watched Ure’s progress from close quarters. It provided proof that the Scandinavian system could offer a clear pathway rather than a detour.
“He's a great guy and someone that has definitely helped me a lot in training and in games by always giving me tips and pointers,” Neat says. “I think I played against him when he was at Rangers at some point in my youth, so it was a bonus to have another familiar face at the club. When I first spoke to the coach, he said that Sirius must be the first ever Allsvenskan team to have two Scottish strikers!
“Robbie has done incredibly well. The Sirius fans wanted him to stay because he was a real cult hero figure here, but his move to Sevilla was very well deserved. He took the Allsvenskan by storm and was totally dominant in terms of his goal return and his hold up play.”
Opportunity arises after Ure’s exit
Sirius have subsequently lost their attacking focal point, creating a space that Neat is determined to fill long-term, although he knows he must earn his opportunity.
“I was struggling to play when Robbie was here. It was always going to be difficult to knock him down, but I want to push my way into the team and I’m just waiting for my chance, really,” he says. “It might not happen this season, but hopefully next year or a couple of seasons, I could go and do what he has achieved as well.”
There is no bitterness about having spent time in Ure’s shadow. Neat instead sees it as part of his education.
“We’ve got a lot of quality in the team and I feel I’ve been doing well, but at the same time I don’t feel any added stress to get into the starting XI at Sirius. I’m patient and I know where I stand in the team at the moment. I’ll continue to work hard and hopefully take my chance when it comes.”
That patience may be his greatest asset. Neat has already adapted to a new country, learned a language from scratch and reinvented himself as a striker. Now comes the biggest challenge: establishing himself in senior football.
Representing Scotland remains the dream
Neat is aware a Scotland call-up remains a long way off and that establishing himself at Sirius must come first. But representing his country has never been a manufactured ambition.
As a child, he dreamed of playing for Scotland at a major tournament. Time has changed the scale of that ambition, but not its importance. “It's gone up and down, that dream has gone further away, it's come closer,” he says. “But I'd do anything just to play for them once. It would mean the world.”
Ure’s emergence has made that dream feel less remote. His form in Sweden earned him a Scotland call-up shortly after his move to Sevilla, demonstrating what can happen when the right opportunity presents itself.
Unfinished business in the north east
There is an appealing symmetry to Neat’s story, but also a sense of unfinished business with Aberdeen. “There’s part of me that wants to go back to Aberdeen at some point,” he admits. “It's my hometown club, and I never really got the chance to play for them.”
For now, his focus is elsewhere: succeeding on loan, earning a regular role at Sirius and discovering how far the Swedish route can take him. Perhaps the most revealing aspect of Neat’s outlook is his refusal to rush.
“Just take it step by step and just enjoy it along the way,” he smiles.
A sensible approach for someone who has already experienced more upheaval than most players his age and learned that football rarely follows a straight path.
Comparisons with Ure will inevitably remain while his remarkable Swedish spell remains fresh, but Neat’s task is to write his own story. For now, the next step is returning to Uppsala a better player. Beyond it, perhaps, lies another improbable destination.
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