STEVE CLARKE has defended his tactics in the defeat against Ukraine after being criticised by pundits like former Scotland manager Craig Levein and former national team defender Willie Miller, telling the pair that they should know better having been involved in the international set-up themselves.
The Scotland head coach says that he isn’t affected by the opinions of others, and understands that pundits are paid to give them, but he is adamant that he was right to stick with the 3-5-2 system that has served his team well despite the poor performance in the World Cup play-off semi-final.
“It’s part of the job,” Clarke said. “They can have their opinion. They have been there so they should know what it’s about.
“I’m not getting dragged into it. I don’t like to comment on pundits because they are paid to give an opinion.
"I don’t read it, I don’t listen to it. I have my own way of dealing with disappointment and how to move on.”
Levein had specifically criticised Clarke’s decision to play with two strikers up top and three defenders at the back after the match, saying on BBC Scotland that he should have gone to a back four much sooner in the game to give the Scots a better chance of progression.
While Levein qualified his comments by stressing how good a job he feels Clarke is doing with the national side, he added that it was a ‘bad night for Steve’, but Clarke defended the formation he chose to start the match with even without one of the main components in its success in Kieran Tierney.
“Playing with a back three has worked out quite well for us with or without Kieran,” he said. "Even in matches without Kieran it has worked OK.
“Maybe the reason I went to a back three was to make us more solid initially as much as it was about getting Kieran and Andy (Robertson) in the same team. The back three has worked all right for us.
“I am not sure what the clamour for change is, maybe because some people like the sound of their own voice and like to sound clever.”
