Paradise found as Strachan turns to his Celtic nation
ANALYSIS
GORDON STRACHAN pulled out the Parkhead playbook for inspiration and it turned out to be Paradise found.
The Scotland boss banked on the Celtic connection producing a World Cup salvage mission in the belief some of the Hoops’ success story might rub off on the national team.
There were so many Celts in the side they could have ditched Flower of Scotland and gone for You’ll Never Walk Alone instead.
Former Hoops boss Strachan went for six Parkhead players and it was understandable given what was at stake.
Craig Gordon, Scott Brown, Kieran Tierney, Stuart Armstrong, James Forrest and Leigh Griffiths have all got drawers packed with medals. They have survived the gauntlet of Champions League qualification. They are streets ahead in the Premiership.
And it eventually paid off as the green brigade helped save Scotland in the race for Russia – and save Strachan’s stewardship.
It wasn’t just the Hoops six on show either. There was ex-Celt Charlie Mulgrew, former Hoops kid Andy Robertson and Brendan Rodgers’s target James Morrison.
The team coach could have formed a Gordon Strachan CSC but ended up Tartan Army heroes as they grabbed a World Cup lifeline.
They might have left it late but debut Bhoy Armstrong helped inspire the best display of the campaign by miles and although there is still a heck of a long way back in the qualification race, at least there is still hope.
There wasn’t much left with 88 minutes gone last night. Maybe the omens didn’t look good with the one-side fits all approach.
The last time Scotland had a side flooded with so many players from one club it was 1993 when Andy Roxburgh picked five Rangers players to play Portugal. No one could blame him given it was the core of a squad in the middle of the nine-in-a-row years.
Unfortunately things didn’t quite go to plan as Scotland were scudded for five-in-a-row after a bit of bum advice from a Lisbon