Dubbed Glasgow Warriors’ “million-dollar-a-game” man by his head coach, Stuart Hogg know his near super-human abilities have been available all too rarely to his team, but as they bid to make a\n overdue European breakthrough the two-time British & Irish Lion is determined to make his presence felt.

Also twice a winner of the Six Nations player-of-the-year award, in spite of playing for a Scotland team that has never made a serious title bid during his six year involvement, Hogg will leave Glasgow at the end of the season having yet to be on a winning team in a European knockout tie unless they can change that next spring.

While eager to do all he can to ensure that does not happen the now vastly experienced, but still only 26-year-old full-back, maturely expresses his ambitions in collective terms, but he is acutely aware that it is now or never for him as a Glasgow player and this weekend could be decisive in terms of their chances of making the quarter-finals.

“We are in a good place in the pool and it all depends how we go this week in terms of how we do in Europe. We had a good training session and I am excited for the weekend,” he said.“It is not just about me and personal accolades. It is about the team getting to the best possible stage we can. I am just want to play my part in it and the boys are in a good place. We have managed to qualify once in the past but we are very much a work in progress and it is going to be tough. Europe does not come easy and we are fully aware of that. It all depends how we got this weekend. We have won one just now and if we two from two over the next couple of weeks against Lyon we will be in a better place than we are now. We are dying to qualify from Europe but we have to beat Lyon to help make that happen.”

Hogg’s injury troubles have been such – a fractured eye socket, shoulder reconstruction, and a torn abdominal muscle among the more serious problems, along with ankle surgery this season – that his availability has almost become a bonus as head coach Dave Rennie light-heartedly suggested this week.

“I tease him a lot,” said the New Zealander. “He’s played two games this year and he played about six last year, so he’s on about $1 million a game at the moment.”

However, Rennie has seen more than enough to know that he must make the most of Hogg’s remaining time as a Warrior before he becomes a Chief with Exeter next season.

“He is really passionate about playing for this club and we’re keen to get him out there as often as we can,” he went on.”To his credit, he’s come out of injury and straight back into international footy and played really well. Obviously, we hope to give him a bit of ball, but even his ability to kick and give you field position is massive. He’s a pretty special player.”

There is not the slightest concern that Hogg will give anything less than his best in his last few months, the coach suggesting that all concerned will benefit from knowing where things stand.

“I think it’s often easier when guys make up their minds early. They stop stressing about what next year looks like and they can just focus on doing a good job now,” Rennie reckoned.“He has been here a lot of years and he’s got a lot of good mates here. He’s desperate to go out on a high note and contribute to that. We are more than comfortable. It’s not the situation that because he’s leaving were starting to promote other guys to look for the future. We have a world-class player in Hoggy and we are keen to use him.”

Having played more games for Scotland than for Glasgow since Rennie arrived, there is, then, an impression that Hogg believes he owes his coach and teammates something in what time remains before making that big money move south of the border.

“I am just looking forward to playing for Glasgow,” he said. “It has been a frustrating old year and a half and I think I have only played nine games since Dave came in. I want to show Dave what I am all about and really put my stamp on the Glasgow jersey. It has been a frustrating old time but I am excited to be back and I am ready to rock and roll.”