STEVE Clarke is looking forward to catching up with Sir Alex Ferguson again before Scotland take on Israel in a Qatar 2022 qualifier at Hampden this evening and seeing the reception which his old pal receives from the sell-out crowd. 

Sir Alex will finally be presented with the cap he won for representing a Scotland XI on an end-of-season tour of Israel, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Canada way back in 1967 before kick-off.

It has taken 54 years to honour the legendary Manchester United manager - who was his country’s leading scorer on their expedition to Asia and Oceania with nine goals - but Clarke feels the recognition is fitting and knows he will be lauded by the 50,000-strong crowd that will be in attendance. 

“It will be nice for the Scottish public to see Sir Alex,” he said. “I have bumped into him already a couple of times this season. It is always nice to catch up with Sir Alex and hear his thoughts. It will be great for the Scottish public to give him the acclaim he deserves.

“He is very, very supportive of the country. I always have nice, positive conversations with Sir Alex. So it’s great that he will be there to get that cap from such a long time ago. I’m sure he will get a fantastic ovation and it is richly deserved.”

But Clarke is far more focused on beating Israel and then emulating what his illustrious compatriot achieved during his brief tenure as Scotland manager - securing qualification for the World Cup finals.

Sir Alex took charge of the national team following the tragic death of Jock Stein at the end of a qualifier against Wales in Cardiff in 1985 and successfully negotiated the two-legged Mexico ’86 play-off against Australia. 

The current incumbent, whose side are in second spot in Group F with four games remaining and in with a chance of finishing runners-up in their section and advancing to the second round, knows that victory over their nearest challengers this evening is absolutely crucial.

He is also well aware just how difficult beating their old sparring partners will be. Scotland have met Israel on no fewer than five occasions since he was appointed in 2019. They have won one, lost one and drawn three. There has never been a great deal to separate evenly-matched rivals.

The former Newcastle United, Chelsea and Liverpool assistant, however, believes there will be differences between this encounter and their past duels and is hopeful he will be celebrating a famous triumph at the end of the 90 minutes.

There will be a full house roaring on Andy Robertson and his team mates for the first time since Clarke succeeded Alex McLeish and their manager knows the vocal backing they will receive will give them an advantage over the visitors.

“Both teams will be aware of each other’s strengths and also aware of each other’s weaknesses,” he said. “I don’t expect a very, very different game to what we have had before. What I would say is that for the first time we have a sell-out at Hampden and hopefully that will make a little bit of difference to ourselves.

“It can work both ways. The supporters before the game are going to be fantastic, we know that. We know they will be fantastic at the start of the game. If we can start the game well and get on top, then they can carry us a long way.

“There will also be times in the game when we will be under pressure and have to control the game without the ball. The supporters need to show they can be patient and get behind us when we need that bit of support. I’m sure they’ll do that.”

Scotland will also have personnel who were not involved against Israel before. Billy Gilmour and Nathan Patterson only made their international debuts in the friendlies before the Euro 2020 finals this summer. But the central midfielder and right back have impressed hugely in their outings since. Their energy and ability could give them an edge they lacked previously.  

Asked if they could be Scotland’s “secret weapons” after taking charge of a final training session at Oriam outside Edinburgh yesterday, Clarke said: “They can be.

“I feel we keep evolving. Bringing in the younger ones and just helps to keep the squad evolving. The core of the squad are picking up more and more caps. The younger ones are picking up more and more caps. And we are just growing as a team.

“If we want to keep growing then a good positive result against Israel will help us to grow even more after the fine performance result away in Vienna last month. Listen, they will have watched us. They will have watched Nathan play for us and watched Billy for us. I’m sure they do their homework as diligently as we do ours. But it’s nice to have them.” 

Clarke could very well, of course, stick with Stephen O’Donnell at right wing back. The much-maligned Motherwell man performed well in the 1-0 win over Austria in Vienna last month and is far more experienced than his young understudy. It is a nice problem for the manager to have.

He also has a big decision to make over who replaces Grant Hanley, the Norwich City centre half who is suspended, in the middle of his three man defence. Does he bring in Liam Cooper, Scott McKenna or Scott McTominay? It will be a big call.

The visitors can field Eran Zahavi, the PSV Eindhoven striker who has been on target six times in Group F, Mu’nas Dabbur and Manor Solomon in forward positions and have netted 14 times in their first six games. They will punish any mistakes ruthlessly.

If Clarke opts to go with Cooper or McKenna then does he break up the Callum McGregor-Billy Gilmour central midfield partnership that worked so well against England, Moldova and Austria and bring in McTominay there?

Leaving the Manchester United player out of his starting line-up would indicate just how far Scotland have come during his reign – as would a win over Israel of which Sir Alex Ferguson himself would be proud.