The Scotland players will be getting their shooting boots on in training this week ahead of their final warm-up game for the European Championships, as manager Steve Clarke tries to resolve a lack of ‘confidence’ in their finishing.
The Scots passed up a host of opportunities before eventually beating minnows Gibraltar by two goals to nil in Faro on Monday night, the third game in succession where they have created numerous openings but failed to convert them at anything like an acceptable rate for Clarke’s liking.
The national team head coach understands that his men are a little nervy as the Euros approaches, but he will be laying on shooting sessions for his players this week as he attempts to get them back in the scoring habit.
“I think it comes down a little bit to confidence,” Clarke said.
“People are searching for confidence.
“Shanks (Lawrence Shankland) didn’t really have any clear-cut chances where you are thinking, ‘go on, he’s getting there.’
“It’s maybe something we need to look at – his positioning, especially on set plays where he was maybe too far out from the centre of goal. There are always things you can look at.
“What can we do about it? Keep practicing in training.
“They have the biggest tournament coming up for the country next week. They all have half a mind on Germany already.
“It sounds terrible to say that, but that’s just the way it is. It’s natural. They want to go on the plane, flying to Germany for the Euros and they are involved in what’s going to be a fantastic tournament in the summer, so you have to make allowances for that.
“The pitch was really sticky [in Faro] and I’m not going to dress it up. We should have passed the ball a little bit better, but it was really sticky.
“We have been training all week on wet pitches with the ball and it wasn’t a pitch you could dribble on.
“So, lots of chances and a little bit more quality required."
Meanwhile, Clarke says he will tell the unlucky players who will be cut from his original 28-man provisional squad before Friday night’s game against Finland at Hampden.
Lyndon Dykes has already withdrawn from that original list through injury, with Clarke calling up Bristol City striker Tommy Conway from the Scotland under-21 squad to replenish his attacking options after Ben Doak was also ruled out yesterday.
Whoever it is that still has to be told they have not made it onto the plane that leaves for Germany on Sunday, Clarke isn't looking forward to the conversation.
“It’s quite a tricky one to be honest because you can put the team in at midnight on Friday,” he said.
“You could tell someone on Thursday they are not going and then we pick up an injury on the Friday and you have to give them a cuddle and say, ‘I love you, you’re going.’ It’s strange that they make us do it like this. But we will find a way.
“I will be speaking to the players concerned they are not going to be in the 26 before the Friday game.”
Clarke admits that his players were perhaps a little tentative against Gibraltar on Monday evening given what happened to Dykes, with nobody wanting to pick up an injury so close to the tournament.
“People won’t think of that,” he said.
“They just think of the excitement etc. But until you are actually on the plane and on the way to Germany there is always a doubt in the back of your mind.
“Probably what happened with Lyndon on the training pitch the other day spooked them a little bit as well. You have to understand. They are human, they have emotions like everybody else.”
The Scotland manager is hoping though that his players will let loose a little at the national stadium against Finland so that they get a proper send-off from the Tartan Army.
“That is what we are after, a good performance at home in front of our supporters to give them that little boost before we go to the tournament,” he said.
“That’s what we aim to do on Friday.
“We will assess who played [against Gibraltar], the minutes they got, whether they feel they need a few more minutes, but it will be a little bit closer to a more familiar Scotland team under my tutelage.”
