STEVE Clarke has challenged his Scotland players to build on their Nations League success by securing Euro 2024 qualification directly after silencing the critics who wanted him “out the door”.
The national team topped Group B1, clinched a Euro 2024 play-off spot and won promotion to the A League when they drew 0-0 with Ukraine in Poland on Tuesday night.
The result in Krakow capped a remarkable turnaround in fortunes after defeats to Ukraine in the Qatar 2022 play-off semi-final and the Republic of Ireland in the Nations League back in June.
Clarke has acknowledged that some fans and pundits had been keen to see him sacked as manager after Scotland’s bid to reach the World Cup finals ended in failure.
However, the 59-year-old is already looking to the future ahead of the draw for the Euro 2024 qualifying stages in Frankfurt on Sunday week.
He is eager for John McGinn and his team mates to book their place in the finals in Germany without using their play-off spot and believes they are more than capable of doing so.
“If you go back to June, some people wanted me out the door,” he said. “Things can change quickly in football.
“This has been a good week. But it’s about trying to make ourselves better to move things forward again.
“We have the play-off place just in case we need it. But I don’t think with this group of players that we will need it. That’s my honest opinion.
“I think we want to improve. You see it in the players and their performances this week. It’s nice to have the safety net of the play-offs, but I feel we can qualify outright.
“I said we would do it (qualify for Qatar 2022), but we didn’t. So I said to the lads ‘let’s get second in the group’. They did that.
“Now we are seeded two. I would expect this team to qualify directly. We carry on. I want to go to Germany.”
Clarke added: “I want to enjoy this week. I want the Scottish public to enjoy this week. I want the players to go away feeling absolutely brilliant about themselves.
“But let’s not just think that’s enough. Let’s push for more. That’s the message I want to get across. Yes, it’s fantastic, but let’s see if we can get even better.”
