BRENDAN Rodgers has admitted many of his players are shattered after playing 60 games in all competitions this season - but insisted they will be able to raise themselves one last time in the William Hill Scottish Cup final on Saturday.
Rodgers is pleased that only three of the Parkhead club’s players - Stuart Armstrong, Jack Hendry and Lewis Morgan - have been selected by his Scotland counterpart for the end-of-season friendlies against Peru and Mexico.
He feels McLeish and the national team will benefit from the likes of James Forrest, Craig Gordon, Leigh Griffiths and Callum McGregor having extended breaks from competitive football when the UEFA Nations League gets underway in September.
“I had to take Kieran Tierney off at the weekend because he was absolutely shattered,” he said. “Players aren’t robots – they’re young guys who give everything in every game they play in.
“But it’s common sense to leave the other guys out because, otherwise, Scotland would suffer later on. I assume they’ll be important men for Scotland going forward. I want to help but I also have to look about the welfare of our players.
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"We’re not going to cry about it. It’s what we want to do, to get to the late stages of the competition, this is what success brings. You can see the toll it takes on elements of this season. It’s not a problem for the cup final.”
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