Steve Clarke reckons his Scotland squad is so good they won’t need the playoff spot to reach Euro 2024.
The national boss is buzzing after Tuesday’s battling draw against Ukraine secured top spot in Nations League Group B1. Clarke’s men won promotion to the top tier for the next instalment of the competition, bagged a guaranteed safety net of a playoff for Euro 2024 and landed in the second group of seeds for the qualification draw in two weeks’ time – avoiding the likes of England and France. They could also land the added bonus of a pathway into the World Cup play-offs depending on how UEFA decide to allocate additional places.
The Scotland gaffer is thrilled to bag a back up shot at Germany 24 but he’s convinced his group have shown over the last fortnight they can earn their spot automatically. The top two teams in each of the 10 groups will go straight to the Euros and Clarke said: “Instead of taking a step forward this week, we’ve taken a giant leap.
“We’ve found another way to play, we’ve found other players in the squad who can do very, very well for us. The squad is stronger. I don’t think with this group of players that we will need it (the play-offs). That’s my honest opinion.
“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. We are seeded two and I would expect this team to qualify directly.”
Scotland are on an upward cycle again but Clarke will demand more. He said: “I haven’t looked at who is there yet or who we can get. 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.”
Clarke was thrilled with the three very different displays in the Ukraine double header and Ireland in between. There was the flair of the first Ukraine win, the patience and quality to come back to beat the Irish and the gritty, gutsy, back-to-the-wall heroics in Poland, when the squad was ravaged by injury and illness.
The Tartan Army are in party mode but Clarke is happier he now knows he has strength in depth as well as cast iron characters. He joked: “Yeah, but if you go back to June, some people wanted me out the door.
“Things can change quickly in football. This has been a good week. It’s about trying to make ourselves better to move things forward again.
“It means if we are going to places like the other night, when you are looking to get a result that takes us to that next step, then we know we have a team that can do it.”
Clarke’s own contract is up at the end of the Euro qualifying campaign but he’s planning on sticking around for Germany. Beyond that the Nations League A section will bring a bit of glamour to the groups with the likes of France, Spain, Italy and Belgium – but not relegated England.
Scotland passing the Auld Enemy on the way up was the tin hat on a memorable international fortnight but Clarke reckons the nation will get a boost mixing with the big guns. He said: “I don’t think we’ve got anything over England. They weren’t involved in this process. We’ll just enjoy it for ourselves.
“It’ll be tough (in the Nations League A group). It’s certainly not going to be easy. You see Wales, they went up and they’ve come back again.
“If you want to improve you want to play against the better teams. We’re going to be challenged six times in that tournament, that’s for sure.
“But these players have come away from this tournament as better players and they will come away from the next one even better again. The young guys will be getting more experience playing against top teams.
“The games are a way off but my immediate thoughts are to catch up with some sleep as it’s been a tough 10 days.”
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