Scotland manager Steve Clarke on why Germany had a Euro 2024 training ground bust-up

STEVE Clarke has attributed Germany’s training ground bust-up this week to their burning desire to enjoy a successful Euro 2024 and predicted the host nation will be back to their vintage best when the opening game kicks off in Munich on Friday evening.

However, Clarke has also stressed that he also believes his Scotland team are more than capable of competing the home favourites in the Allianz Arena if they ignore the “circus” which will surround the tournament curtain raiser and concentrate fully on their own performance.

A scuffle broke out between Borussia Dortmund striker Niclas Fullkrug and Real Madrid centre-half Antonio Rudiger during a crossing drill on Monday because the forward was unhappy with the defender pushing him to the ground. 

The pair, who are close friends having come up through the age-group ranks together, squared up to each other and almost came to blows before assistant coach Sandro Wagner, the former Bayern Munich player, intervened and separated them.

(Image: PA) Toni Kroos, the Real midfielder who has come out of international retirement to play at Euro 2024, played down the altercation afterwards when he spoke to reporters and claimed it was a “good thing” that two of his team mates had shown such passion. Clarke agrees with the six-time Champions league winner.

He fully expects Germany, who are third favourites to win the European Championships behind England and France, to be formidable opponents in the coming weeks and knows that Scotland will have to rediscover the form they showed in qualifying to get a result in Bavaria. 

Speaking to the Scotland team’s official media channel, he said: "Everyone was telling me when the draw was made that Germany wasn’t in a good place. I wasn’t fooled. I wasn’t getting carried away with that talk. You know when it comes to a major tournament that Germany are always ready.

“It’s a home tournament. You know they’re going to be really up for this one. There was a bit in the media this week about a little bust-up on their training pitch. That just tells me that they’re ready and up for it. We expect a very, very good Germany side.

“Julian Nagelsmann’s taken a little bit of time to put his stamp on the team, but that’s what happens. In recent friendly matches they’ve looked like their old selves. But hopefully they’re facing a very, very good Scotland side. I’m looking for a good performance. Play as well as you can and we’ll see what happens.”

There will be an official opening ceremony before the Group A game between Germany and Scotland on Friday night and the late football legend Fanz Beckenbauer, who lifted the Henri Delaunay trophy as a player and a manager, will be honoured by tournament organisers UEFA.

(Image: PA) Clarke knows the festivities will impact on his charges’ preparations for the match and revealed that he will speak to Andy Robertson and his compatriots about how to handle the disruption to their normal routine in the coming days. But he will also stress to them the importance of enjoying the experience as well.

"Individually, they have to understand that we’re not there for the occasion,” he said. “We’re there for the game and the vast majority will understand that. The pre-match routine will be different because there’s a show going on on the pitch.

“It’s going to be completely different and we’ll have a chat about that. We’ll tell the players to expect something different, to adapt and be ready. Forget the circus that’s going on round about us and enjoy the game.”

Clarke admitted that the build-up to the Euro 2024 finals had, with Ben Doak and Lyndon Dykes both being ruled out by injury and Craig Gordon and John Souttar having to be cut from the final 26 man Scotland squad, been challenging for him.

However, he has been pleased with the focus and application of his players since they arrived at their training base here in Garmisch-Partenkirchen near the Austrian border and is optimistic they are capable of reaching the knockout rounds of a major tournament for the first time in their history.

“I’ve got to be honest, it was a really difficult pre-camp,” he said. “There were so many variables. You can deal with the early injuries because you have time to prepare and find replacements. The players have got time to get over their disappointment.

“But you go into pre-camp and we had the Lyndon Dykes one. It frightened the other 27 who were in the squad at that time. It’s not something you like to see, one of your team-mates getting carried off on a stretcher. It isn’t good and it’s put Lyndon out the tournament.

“The Ben Doak one was also disappointing for him. At least he was there. Everyone within the camp could see his qualities and what he’ll bring in the future. His knee wasn’t going to be ready. It was easier for me to understand that than Ben. He’s young enough and he has plenty of tournaments in front of him, hopefully.

“It’s good for Lewis (Morgan) and Tommy (Conway) to come into the group. It’s always nice when someone gets a chance to come in and take part in a tournament like this. But there’s the flipside - the negativity I have to deal with in terms of Lyndon and Ben missing out. There’s always that balance with the boys who are not here.”

Clarke continued; “But it’s a group that’s grown together. They enjoy each other’s company. There are no little groups that isolate themselves. They’re happy to be here and so they should be. They should be delighted to be here. From now, it’s about being ready for the games.

(Image: PA) “All those dynamics have been put in place over the last four or five years. Something I earmarked pretty early on, going into the last tournament, was that they had about 400 caps between them. This time we’re going in with about 800. They’re a bit more experienced. “We’ve lost some of the younger players, which leaves us a bit older as a group. But we’ve got a good, experienced squad who have a better idea this time of what’s required. Four points is the target to get qualification, but we’d like a little bit more than that if we can.

"It’s just about being on the grass, doing what we do best. We’ll make sure the players are as well prepared as they can be between now and kick-off. We can help a little bit, but the players have to do it on the pitch.”