Shearer: Scotland have bridged international gap under Clarke

I find myself sitting rubbing my eyes in disbelief when it comes to watching Scotland at the moment.

It is hard to believe it’s really my country who are passing the ball about for fun and disposing of teams with ease – but that’s exactly what I saw in Friday’s 3-0 win in Cyprus.

For years my biggest complaint about watching Scotland was the fact we seemed to be chasing the opposition at times and having to work so hard just to get on the ball.

But Steve Clarke has bridged the gap brilliantly. We’re no longer the poor relations in international football, we’re a team to be feared.

We play a neat and tidy brand of football which is so effective but it’s the control we seem to have in games which is what really stands out for me.

On Friday, I looked at my telly and I couldn’t believe we were 3-0 up away from home after only half an hour.

I was not complaining, though, and there was nothing fortunate about the scoreline at all. We were well worth our lead.

I’m happy to have qualification confirmed tonight – but silencing Rodri again would be nice, too

Steve won’t admit it, but he surely has to believe were on our way to Germany for next summer’s Euros finals after winning our first five matches.

My pals all certainly believe we are as good as there and they have all been busy making plans for next summer already.

I’d love to see our place in the finals confirmed tonight thanks to a draw between Norway and Georgia, but if we have to go to Spain and beat them again next month, I’ll take that, too.

Spaniard Rodri really got under my skin when we beat them 2-0 in March with his post-match comments saying we were rubbish. Aye, we were so rubbish we beat his team.

I’ll be over the moon if the Manchester City midfielder is forced to explain how this rubbish team beat his country again next month following his disrespectful comments after the game at Hampden earlier this year.

Supporting cast deserve a chance against England

Ahead of our 150th Anniversary Heritage Match, @andrewrobertso5 and Harry Kane met at the West of Scotland Cricket Club – the site where Scotland and England contested the first ever international match in 1872 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿#SCOENG pic.twitter.com/a7IMxRbl0s

— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) September 11, 2023

We can pause our race for Euro 2024 for tonight, though, as we welcome England to Hampden for our 150th anniversary friendly.

I use the term friendly loosely here as history has shown these games are rarely anything but cordial affairs.

Steve is right to say England is a great test for his players ahead of the higher calibre of opposition they can look forward to playing in the next 18 months.

I’m sure the English-based members of the Scotland squad would love to have the bragging rights for when they return to their clubs on Wednesday, too.

But I’d still like to see the supporting cast in the squad given a chance to show what they can do against Gareth Southgate’s team at the National Stadium tonight.

We’ve got a good group of players in the squad, but between qualifiers and Nations League matches opportunities to give some guys game time are few and far between these days.

It could be Fergie time for Scotland

Lewis Ferguson would benefit from some game time for Scotland. Image: SNS.

There’s nothing to be lost from giving the likes of Lewis Ferguson a run out in the midfield at Hampden tonight.

He’s doing brilliantly in Serie A since making the move to Bologna, but trying to get into this Scotland team ahead of Scott McTominay or John McGinn is a huge task given how well they are doing just now.

Nobody wants a situation like the one we saw in the 1990s when former Aberdeen defender David Robertson called time on his international career after growing frustrated at meeting up with the squad only to watch from the sidelines.

We’ve got a good group of players who are all desperate to play their part and what better way for the manager to see what they can do than by putting in a winning performance against England tonight?

If there’s one international fixture I would have loved to have played in, it would have been this one – but sadly it was not to be.

I watched a few as a fan, though, and I have no doubt tonight’s encounter will be a rip-roaring occasion no matter who takes to the pitch.

Huge month ahead for Caley Thistle in the Championship

Inverness’ Morgan Boyes looks dejected at full time after the defeat by Arbroath. Image: SNS.

Caley Thistle’s SPFL Trust Trophy campaign ended with a whimper with a disappointing 4-2 defeat at Arbroath on Saturday.

But I don’t imagine Billy Dodds will be too disappointed at being knocked out of the cup.

I look at the team he fielded at Gayfield and it was clear Doddsy used the fixture as a chance to give some of the players who haven’t featured a lot some much needed game time.

It is similar to the scenario Steve Clarke will be wrestling with ahead of tonight’s friendly against England.

The Championship remains the priority for Caley Thistle this season, and Saturday represents the start of a significant week for the club this early in the campaign.

Inverness have the top two in the division next up in Raith Rovers and Dundee United and it is two games with huge importance.

It has been a slow start from Caley Jags and the gap between Doddsy’s side and both Raith and United is already a significant nine points.

They have a chance to close that gap in the next two games, and it is vital they get some wins under their belts if they have any intention of challenging for automatic promotion this season.