Competition for Scotland's Defensive Spots
Kieran Tierney, John Souttar, Grant Hanley, and Scott McKenna are contending for positions in Scotland's defence.
Since the triumph in November, head coach Steve Clarke has been in a period without matches, allowing time for reflection but no opportunity to implement changes on the pitch. He has observed his players weekly but lacked the chance to work with them directly.
Now, Clarke has his squad together again for a training camp and upcoming friendlies against Japan at Hampden on Saturday and Ivory Coast in Liverpool on Tuesday, presenting decisions to be made, particularly regarding the centre-back pairing.
Frequent Changes in Defence During World Cup Qualifying
By a combination of tactical choice and necessity, Clarke altered Scotland's defensive pairing in every World Cup qualifying match.
The campaign began with Grant Hanley and John Souttar in Copenhagen. The next match featured Scott McKenna and Souttar against Belarus. The pairing reverted to Hanley and Souttar versus Greece. Then McKenna and Jack Hendry started against Belarus at home, followed by Hanley and Souttar again away to Greece.
For the decisive World Cup qualifier against Denmark, the intended centre-back duo was Souttar and McKenna. However, an injury to McKenna before kickoff forced Hanley to step in.
International Friendly: Scotland v Japan
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Current Defensive Status Ahead of June Matches
As Scotland approaches June fixtures, including the match against Haiti in Boston, the status of defenders remains a key consideration.
Grant Hanley missed six consecutive Hibernian games due to injury from early February and was an unused substitute last weekend.
John Souttar has been an unused substitute in Rangers' last two matches and only appeared briefly in the 105th minute during the Scottish Cup quarter-final against Celtic at Ibrox, where his performance was below par.
Jack Hendry is playing regularly in the Saudi Pro League, having faced top forwards such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Ivan Toney, and Alexandre Lacazette this season.
Scott McKenna is competing at the top of the Croatian League with Dinamo Zagreb.
Dom Hyam, with a single Scotland appearance as a late substitute against Norway three years ago, plays regularly for Wrexham, currently seventh in the English Championship.
Craig Halkett, a key player for Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts, was notably omitted from Clarke's squad.
'Clarke Won't Ignore What Went Wrong'
Clarke likely grounded himself quickly after the exhilaration of World Cup qualification, assuming he ever left that emotional high.
Despite the campaign's success, he remains aware of shortcomings.
Had Denmark scored one more goal against Belarus in the penultimate round—where they had 34 attempts—Scotland would be in the play-offs rather than preparing for pre-World Cup friendlies.
The victory over Denmark at Hampden was a memorable climax, but it may have been an exception. Scotland conceded six goals in their last three qualification games, contrasting sharply with the opening clean sheet in Copenhagen.
The 2-1 home win against Belarus drew criticism from the players. Andy Robertson expressed that it did not feel like a win. McKenna admitted the team let themselves down. Che Adams acknowledged the fans' boos were justified.
John McGinn said that, at half-time, Clarke was the angriest he'd ever seen him. "Really, really disappointed in my team," the head coach said. McGinn later called the performance "jobby".
Belarus had 22 shots compared to Scotland's 12 at Hampden.
In the following match, Scotland trailed 3-0 in Greece and were fortunate not to concede more, with goalkeeper Craig Gordon making seven saves. The Greeks had 18 attempts before Scotland rallied to score twice.
Even in the Denmark game, Scotland were dominated for much of the match. Denmark had 19 attempts to Scotland's 10; 33 attacks to 18; nine corners to two; and 40 touches in Scotland's box compared to Scotland's 14 in Denmark's. Denmark scored two goals to Scotland's four and secured a play-off spot, while Scotland qualified directly.
While these are the key facts for most, Clarke and his coaching staff will analyze all aspects, positive and negative.
It is not to diminish the achievement to say Scotland benefited from luck at crucial moments and must improve across the board, especially in defence.
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Is Souttar & McKenna the Best Pairing?
Regarding centre-back selections, former Scotland manager Craig Levein prefers a Souttar-McKenna pairing, combining a right-footer and a left-footer. Souttar's current lack of playing time at Rangers does not concern him.
"No, not at all," the former Scotland boss and centre-back said. "He's not a 19 or 20-year-old. He has a lot of experience and brings a calmness in the back line. The balance is better with those two. They know each other. They've played together.
"John's probably the best footballing centre-back we have. Him and Jack Hendry.
"I don't know much about Hyam, but he's playing every week with Wrexham and given the money they have at that club then he must be doing well.
"Grant Hanley might not be as quick as McKenna, but he rarely makes mistakes. He takes a lot of flak, but it's undeserved.
"Halkett's not made the squad, but I like him. He was carrying a wee bit of timber last year, but he's looking as fit as I've seen him for probably four or five years now."
Willie Miller also supports the Souttar and McKenna combination.
"They both have the attributes, the pace and the quality to handle situations perfectly well," the former Scotland centre-back says.
"If you're playing a high line, if you're pushing up and taking it to the opposition, then I would think McKenna and Souttar would be your two.
"But the best out-and-out, grisly defender is Hanley. If you're talking about a penalty-box defender, Hanley is likely to get the nod. It just depends on the game."
Saturday marks the start of the countdown to the World Cup in America, with a challenging game against Japan, a team that recently defeated Bolivia, Ghana, and Brazil.
Clarke has achieved much to bring Scotland to this point, but improvements are needed from centre-back upwards.
