NEVER CHE NEVER
On-fire Adams snubbed Eck’s initial advance but national boss insists door remains open for Blues star
CHE ADAMS said not now. Alex McLeish heard not never.
The Birmingham striker has been scoring for fun in the English Championship with plenty of suitors now circling – and not just clubs.
McLeish’s initial offer of a potential Scotland call-up was snubbed by a £20million-rated star who, though born in Leicester, qualifies through a grandparent.
But the Hampden door hasn’t been shut on the 22-year-old – rather big Eck reckons walking through it could “enhance” the career of a hitman who already has 19 goals this campaign.
McLeish sounded out Adams, who has been touted for a big-money move this summer with Manchester United, Arsenal, Watford and Celtic all reportedly scouting him in recent weeks.
However, the England Under-20 cap – who also turned down an invite from Antigua and Barbuda in 2014 – is keeping his options open.
With trips to Kazakhstan and San Marino set to kick off the Euro 2020 qualifying campaign next month, McLeish said: “I spoke to his agent.
“He said Che didn’t feel he was quite ready to come and play for Scotland yet.
“He just wanted to concentrate on club football at the moment.
“I personally think we could enhance his career if he comes and pledges his career to Scotland but at the moment it’s a no.
“We cannot afford to slam the door on anyone. We are a small nation, we have to keep all our resources open. He has been in the system for a long while.
“The Under-21s tried to get him and maybe even longer – the 18s or 19s – but at that time he maybe thought he would get called up for England or something and he knocked them back.
“I would rather not cut my nose off to spite my face. I would rather be calm on it and assess the situation as it goes on. You slam the door shut and suddenly you have no resources left. We will keep the door open. Gareth Southgate can probably afford to discard them easier than I could.”
That door could be opened to Oliver Burke two years on from the last of his five senior caps.
Burke dropped back down to the Under-21s after a meteoric rise that saw him capped by Gordon Strachan following a megabucks move to RB Leipzig from Nottingham Forest.
After returning to England with West Brom in another bigmoney transfer the 21-year-old lost his way before last month’s loan switch to Parkhead.
The attacker has started well under Brendan Rodgers and that could see him welcomed back when McLeish names his squad for the two qualifying fixtures.
The Scotland boss has seen how quickly careers can achieve lift-off having tried to bring Gareth Bale to Birmingham on loan during Harry Redknapp’s time bossing Spurs.
Burke’s versatility could also make him a key player through the middle or out wide. Sadio Mane’s ability to fit in anywhere across the frontline has made him a revelation at Liverpool and McLeish suggested Burke could be Scotland’s equivalent.
Speaking at Hampden yesterday, he said: “Oliver’s come up here and he’s playing for the team at the top of the league, a team with great belief and confidence in themselves and who’ve been used to winning everything for the past few years.
“That has been a great environment for him to come into. He’s struggled a bit to nail down a permanent place down south and he’s also been in and out of the Celtic team.
“But you can see the confidence is coming back to him and we have to evaluate everyone who is of Scottish origin.
“He had a meteoric rise right at the beginning but you have to be patient with the guys. I know a lot of players can mature early.
“Oli started like a house on fire, he had a wee stutter and now he is coming back again with a lot of confidence.
“When I was at Aberdeen, in my young days I always remember you think you have
made it then you hit a spell when you cannot see the wood from the trees and think, ‘I don’t know what I am going to do to get back to that form.’
“And then it can come back again – just a certain moment in a game or bit of confidence you get and your career is off and running again.
“It was like Gareth Bale. I tried to get him on loan and Harry was going to give me him.
“He said, ‘Hold fire just now, we are short of men and playing him in Europe.’ He scored twice! There goes that loan deal.
“I was bringing him in as a left-back at the time. Harry played him further forward and the rest is history.
“Of course, if he’s playing to a certain level then Oli will be a candidate. I’m not saying we’ll definitely pick him but we can’t ignore him. Against teams who play a high line Burke, with his pace, is certainly one of those players who could harm them.
“I can see him in any of the front roles because of his versatility. You look at Liverpool’s front three where Sadio Mane can play wide or through the middle.
“If you have players who can do that you can use them anywhere.
“But especially against opponents who use that high line, there could be a place for him there. He has a lot to give. When I got in that maturity spell, when you get to 28, 29, 30, it’s experience you can rely on. But confidence is a big factor – if Oli can do what he has started off doing at Celtic then it can only be good for us.” McLeish is hoping Burke’s clubmate Kieran Tierney is available with the full-back set to play his first game since December on Sunday against Motherwell. Tierney has been sidelined with a hip injury but Eck said: “You’d reckon the training he’s had in recent weeks has been of a high standard so if he’s ready for Celtic he should be ready for Scotland.”
Last year ended on a high by securing a Euro play-off place through the Nations League.
And McLeish said: “I’m bursting to get started again. It has been quite a long break and you get the whiff of the atmosphere around the place.
“We finished well at the end of the year and put smiles back on everyone’s face again. The optimism rises. “It’s now trying to cement that and have a great attempt to get through via the groups instead of worrying about the play-offs.”