REBUILD SCOTLAND THECELTICWAY

Fletch urges Hampden chiefs to copy Rodgers revolution

DARREN FLETCHER has pinpointed the Celtic connection as the way ahead for Scotland in the wake of our World Cup heartache.

And he reckons the Brendan Rodgers Parkhead revolution has set the foundation for the future of the Scotland national team.

And the by-product of the that has been a better standard of player returned to the international set-up.

And while that will count for little at

this moment in time in the wake of yet another failed campaign, the player believes that the groundwork is there for whatever may come next for Scotland.

“To me, Brendan Rodgers has been amazing for Scottish football because he has been a massive help to the national team.

“The last Scotland squad we had six players in here for Celtic who are all used to playing with one another, who are all used to pressure games and having to win but more than just that – every one of them has improved since he arrived at Celtic.

“As a manager of an international team, you only have brief periods of time to work with players and get on the training ground.

“Having players that know one another and who have clearly been coached in such a way that they have kicked on, only helps us as a nation.

“It has been a big part of Scotland’s development, I think. Stuart Armstrong has come on leaps and bounds, Scott Brown has always been a fantastic player, but he is another who I think took his game up another level under Brendan.

“And Craig Gordon, Callum McGregor, Kieran Tierney and especially Leigh Griffiths have all shown a massive difference in their game.

“The improvement has been there for everyone to see and while that has been great for Celtic it has also been great for Scotland and I think it is important that element is not overlooked.”

And while Fletcher has viewed Rodgers’ work only from a distance, he has cited the manner in which teams and individuals progress on his watch.

“I don’t know Brendan too well but I have experienced his work. He is a fantastic manager and I say that not as someone who has worked with him closely but just on the evidence that is in front of my eyes – everywhere he has gone he has done a really good job,” he said.

“The way his teams play is always quite distinctive. There is a tactical element mixed with desire and hard work, pressing and attacking and what I think you always note wherever Brendan goes is the improvement of players.

“That pressure is not easy. There is a drive to keep the unbeaten run they are on at the minute going.

“What you find when you hook up at international level is that these are guys who don’t accept mediocrity, who don’t accept draws.

“That mentality coming into the international set-up can only be a good thing.

“When we teamed up last week at first, the Celtic lads were devastated that they had drawn the previous weekend’s game with Hibs.

“That tells you everything about the demands they put on themselves.

“That is the mentality if you want to be a top team and achieve the kind of things that they have.”