10 things we know (probably) about Scotland after Gordon Strachan’s first year as national coach.
1 Charlie Celtic is better than Charlie Stoke.
It seems a long time ago that Charlie Adam was last a first team regular for his club (it was with Blackpool in 2011) and a fair while since he was a Scotland first choice (under Craig Levein). Adam hadn’t been given much game time by Strachan until Tuesday night, with Mulgrew the preferred option anchoring the midfield behind Scott Brown, so Norway was his chance to put a doubt in Strachan’s mind. He didn’t take it.
2 Scotland have got two very good goalkeepers.
Actually, we’d have three if Craig Gordon makes an improbable return from injury. David Marshall has thrived at Cardiff City and now bears no resemblance to the jittery figure who lost his first nine games as a Scotland player. If he and Allan McGregor continue to excel in the English Premier League it isn’t a certainty that Strachan will choose the Hull City man when Scotland next meet up.
3 Craig Bryson and Craig Conway won’t be Scotland regulars.
It might seem harsh to suggest that one start under Strachan will be the only chance they get, but that’s international football. It can work for you (Ikechi Anya took to it straight away) but it can also be an opportunity that passes you by with the flash of a sliding door. Strachan is blessed with midfield options and neither Bryson against Norway, nor Conway against the USA suggested they are better than the established players who had dropped out through injury. Both look like squad fillers at best.
4 Too many Scotland players aren’t first team regulars with their clubs.
Five out of the six who started in Molde don’t get a game most weekends (and in Alan Hutton’s case any weekend). This wasn’t a one off, and I’d guess that the statistic is pretty similar for most Scotland fixtures these days. We’ve got away with it so far, but the fear remains that lack of match sharpness (at full-back in particular) will cost us dearly at some point.
5 We could still do with the two Fletchers.
Steven Fletcher is our best striker, and Darren Fletcher our best midfielder. Considering Strachan hasn’t been able to call on the latter at all, and has scarcely had the former at his disposal either, you can see that there’s room for improvement in the team merely by getting the pair of them back for the next qualifying campaign. Whether Darren Fletcher’s return allows Scott Brown to push forward more, or vice versa, they’ve proved in the past that they can work well together as a dynamic central midfield combination, and the introduction of Mulgrew into that area in Fletcher’s absence doesn’t change that.
6 Centre-back remains a worry.
Grant Hanley and Russell Martin still appear to be the best bet just now, but they’re a seven out of 10 combination on a good day. Gordon Greer is another dependable sort, but is of a similar standard. Of the Scottish centre-halves we’ve currently got at our disposal, Danny Wilson of Hearts at his peak is the only one I can see who is capable of improving that area of our team, which is still extremely vulnerable to pace and guile.
7 Kris Boyd has still got a long way to go.
He may have been recalled as a replacement to the squad which travelled to Norway, but don’t expect to see Boyd get much game time under Strachan. For all the talk of Strachan trying to find ways of getting two strikers on the pitch, he’ll stick with the one up front and one of his off-the-striker types when we get going again in March. Even if he’s scoring regularly for Kilmarnock, Boyd is unlikely to be above Steven Fletcher and Steven Naismith in the pecking order. It looks like a battle with Jordan Rhodes to be third choice.
8 Some more pace in the team would be nice.
Anya can provide it (though he can’t dine out on his debut forever) but we need more options. James Forrest isn’t a Celtic fans’ favourite nor a Tartan Army one, and is injury prone, but he could be crucial when the Euro qualifiers come round. It would also be good to see a wide man whose first instincts aren’t safety first – cutting inside and laying the ball back. Keep an eye on the form of Peter Pawlett and Ryan Fraser.
9 Don’t expect many new faces.
Having just said keep an eye on the form of Peter Pawlett and Ryan Fraser, it should be added that they, or others like them, will have to be very impressive because Strachan’s squad for the Euros won’t feature many debutants. He’ll be doing his best to unearth and convert an English centre-half (like Stephen Caulker) into a Scottish one, but other than that it wouldn’t surprise me if there isn’t a single new cap when Scotland play their first qualifier for France 2016 in 10 months’ time. That’s down to a combination of a sustained period of form and results from those who got the first chance, Strachan’s own cautious managerial instincts and the fact that the current under-21 team isn’t a vintage one. Stuart Armstrong may be a squad man, so too Ryan Jack, but other than that the only two players I can see who are capable of turning his head are Ryan Gauld and Islam Feruz (if he gets loaned out from Chelsea). Both are full internationals in waiting and could be 50-plus cap winners, but the Euros are probably too soon for them.
10 Strachan is perfect for the Scotland job.
This is probably the most important point of the lot. You feel safe with certain managers in certain positions and Strachan and Scotland are one of those perfect fits. Players like playing for him, and the Tartan Army are fully behind him. And he gets international football. Not only that, but he isn’t one of those who is using the position to bounce him into a club job, so we can be fairly certain he’s in it for the long haul. If Walter Smith and Alex McLeish had been of the same mindset we might have qualified for a championship finals already. To have a winning mentality and a style of football embedded so early in his tenure is more than we could have dared hope for post Craig Levein. And, judging by Tuesday night’s match, we may even have a lucky manager as well.