Gareth Southgate insists he is in the exact same boat as Steve Clarke with regards to Elliot Anderson's situation over his international future.
The Newcastle midfielder has yet to commit to either Scotland or England. He is eligible to play for either country having been born in Whitley Bay, but holding qualification for the Scottish national team through his grandparentage.
Clarke had called Anderson up to his September camp for the international double-header against Cyprus and England, but the 20-year-old had a change of heart and pulled out from the squad.
This was to allow him some more time to consider his position. Yesterday, Clarke explained that no further conversations had taken place between himself and the player.
And Southgate admits he's in the same position. Asked if he had spoken to Anderson after naming his most recent England squad, he responded: “I haven’t. Those things (technical director) John McDermott deals with. We are the same as Steve, respectful those decisions are big ones and we don’t want to pressure anybody.
“We like Elliot, we think he is a very good player with high potential. He is obviously at a club that are absolutely flying. So we will just have to wait and see. We are very respectful that if he needs time to think that through, we completely understand.”
Harvey Barnes is another Newcastle player who could yet turn out for either country. He has yet to decide upon his international future and hasn't made an appearance in a competitive game so far in his career.
Meanwhile, Steve Clarke has outlined his reasons for dropping Lawrence Shankland after leaving the Hearts striker out of the Scotland squad for the forthcoming double-header against Spain and France.
Shankland, who has netted five times for the Tynecastle club this season, has been replaced by Jacob Brown of Premier League newcomers Luton Town for the games in Seville and Lille.
The 28-year-old, who has made five appearances for his country and scored on one occasion, was called up for the matches against Cyprus and England last month.
However, he did not get involved in either the Euro 2024 qualifier in Larnaca or the 150th Anniversary Heritage Match at Hampden and Clarke has opted to select Brown ahead of him.
