Scotland winger Oliver Burke is calling on his side to put their chastening defeat in Kazakhstan behind them and rally in support of manager Alex McLeish.
Thursday’s dire 3-0 EURO 2020 qualifying loss to the Kazakhs has intensified the pressure on McLeish, who has now lost seven of his 11 matches since returning for a second stint as national team boss last year.
With a quick turnaround now awaiting the Scots ahead of tomorrow’s qualifier in San Marino, Burke is eager to show a spirited response to the disappointment.
Burke, who is on loan at Celtic from West Bromwich Albion, said: “We have to all get behind the manager. It’s about the players out there as well as the manager.
“Against Kazakhstan we didn’t do what we were told to do, obviously. I think we had our moments, but we didn’t have enough of them.
“It’s one of those days unfortunately. It’s one to reflect on and learn from as a player, definitely. I think we all have to recover, prepare as much as we can and be ready. We want to prove everybody wrong, that we can do it.”
Burke won his sixth Scots cap in Astana Arena, in what was his first senior international outing in nearly two years.
Having struggled to live up to early promise in his career, which earned him a £13 million move from Nottingham Forest to German outfit RB Leipzig in 2016, Burke is pleased his fine recent displays for the Hoops have secured a return to the international fold.
The 21-year-old says the result is a dampener however, adding: “I’m obviously very happy to be back in the setup, and very proud to be a part of the Scotland national team.
“It’s not really about that now, it’s about the team. It was a difficult night back at the hotel, but we just have to think about the next game now.
“We need to focus on picking ourselves up. We know we can do much better than that.”
