ROBBO: ICE CAN MELT ENGLAND Root keeps the faith in batting flops
Keep it cool at Wembley says Andy
SCOTLAND skipper Andrew Robertson says the Tartan Army need “ice in their brains” when they face England at Wembley.
Steve Clarke’s men got off to a poor start on their return to finals action after 23 years. They played well for much of the game against the Czech Republic but still went down 2-0.
It means Scotland need to take at least a point when they face the Auld Enemy at Wembley on Friday.
Robertson points to the fact that the Tartan Army have the fewest caps of any side in the Euros.
And he believed that showed when the canny Czechs made the most of their chances at Hampden while the
Scots blew their opportunities a few times.
Robertson is used to playing in big games for Liverpool but most of his team-mates peform on a lesser stage at club level.
He said: “I am very lucky to have the experiences that I have had, a couple of others are as well.
“But most of them maybe haven’t been in that situation. It was important to have, I think the manager said it in his pre-match talk to us, fire in the belly but ice in the brain, and I don’t think we did that well enough at the start.
“Maybe we were too erratic, maybe some of us were too caught up in the moment, but we did then settle.
“We are new to this. I think we are the least-capped team in the tournament, which you have to take into account.
“But unfortunately, there is not enough time to learn on this job. You need to learn very quickly.”
Scotland have plenty of quality in their side with the likes of Scott McTominay and John McGinn doing their stuff in the Premier League.
But they are lacking in attack with Lyndon Dykes leading the line. He scored 12 times for Queens Park Rangers in the Championship last season.
His overall career record of 49 strikes in 215 appearances isn’t going to strike fear into international defences.
He missed a couple of excellent chances against the Czechs that proved costly.
Robertson admits that goals are going to be a real struggle for the Scots.
He said: “It’s a tough lesson for us that at the highest level, at the best tournaments, you have to take your chances.”
Che Adams is likely to start against England and he has more high-level experience in the Premier League with Southampton.
He’s hardly a goal machine though with 67 in 256 club games so it could still be a struggle to hit the target.
There were issues at the back too against the Czechs after keeper David Marshall was lobbed from the halfway line for the killer second goal.
Boss Clarke will keep the faith
JOE Root says he won’t rip up the England batting line-up despite their struggles against New Zealand.
The skipper lost his first home series to the Black Caps who were superior with bat and ball. But the England top six looks rocky and hardly fit to take on India later this summer. It was hardly a good start for Chris Silverwood who now has full responsibility for picking the team.
None of the batsmen who played except Root average more than 33 and that doesn’t seem good enough for international cricket. But the captain won’t be making big changes.
He said: “It would be the wrong time to start panicking and rip up all the hard work we have done for such a long period of time.
“Historically we have done that going into major tournaments and going into major series and it’s made things even worse.
“Ultimately it’s about getting this group, taking what has happened this week and making them better going forward, making them more resilient.
“It’s been a frustrating and disappointing performance and I don’t think we’ve given a fair account of ourselves.
“We’ve been outplayed in all three departments and particularly the batting. We have to be honest, front up to that and learn some hard lessons.”
Root was missing the likes of Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali after their return from the Indian Premier League. But he hopes to have them back soon.
He added: “That’s out of my hands, to a degree. In terms of our best XI, I’d like to think that if we are all fit that will be the case for the five Test matches against India.”