STEVE Clarke said last night that he omitted Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths from his Scotland squad for next month’s Euro 2020 qualifying double header against Russia and Belgium to give him the breathing space he needs to return to his best form.
The former Tartan Army favourite has scored three goals in eight appearances under Neil Lennon this season but after consultations with Celtic staff, Clarke decided he wasn’t quite ready to return. There is no place either for his former Kilmarnock striker Eamonn Brophy, who has fallen victim to a difficult start to the campaign at Rugby Park.
“I spoke to quite a few people about Leigh,” the Scotland manager said. “Listen, everybody knows what Leigh’s good at. When he’s fit and firing and 100-per-cent he’s a big, big talent.
“He’s come a long way in a short space of time after a really serious chapter in his life. Don’t forget, it wasn’t that long ago he wasn’t even training, he wasn’t playing. He hasn’t got a lot of minutes in his legs this year – never mind this season.
“And rather than put him under the pressure of bringing him into the squad, I’d rather give him a little bit more time to breathe to get fit at Celtic. Also to get back to the level of sharpness that he needs to be to be a top player. I don’t think that he’s quite fully fit and firing in the way that he can do.
“You could call him in regardless,” Clarke added. “But then you’d be putting the boy under even more pressure. And maybe at this stage he doesn’t need that.”
Taking Griffiths’ goals from the equation removes a potent attacking option but Clarke can at least add Robert Snodgrass and Steven Naismith to his mix. The West Ham forward returns to the group for the first time in almost a year, when he wasn’t stripped for the Nations League encounter with Israel in Haifa under Alex McLeish. While Clarke has been less successful in persuading some other veteran refusenik players, including Sheffield Wednesday’s Steven Fletcher, to return to the fold, he has no intention of giving up trying.
“I’ve been fortunate in that Steven Naismith is going to be available,” said Clarke. “He’s fit and training this week. Steven’s also got a number of goals for his country – I think it’s nine in 49 – so that gives us a little boost on the goalscoring front. Robert Snodgrass is back in, whose got seven goals in 26 or 27 appearances. So we have added a few goals with those two. James [Forrest] is doing well, Ryan Christie is playing very well,” he added. “I also watched Callum McGregor spank one in from 20-yards at the weekend. So we have goals in the team.
Ryan Jack is rewarded for his early season form at Rangers with a place in a crowded midfield corps, with Craig McGillivray of Portsmouth a surprise option as a goalkeeping understudy to Wigan’s David Marshall and Jon McLaughlin of Sunderland. Injury call-offs to central defenders Scott McKenna or Aberdeen, Stuart Findlay of Kilmarnock and John Souttar of Hearts means a recall for Norwich City’s Grant Hanley and Liam Cooper of Leeds.
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