Some folk got carried away with the loss to Belgium but we have shown our character
I had to make an impression or that could have been me finished
STEVEN NAISMITH last night hailed Scotland for showing their character in bouncing back from their Belgium horror show to get their Nations League campaign off to a flier.
The Hearts attacker insisted criticism of Alex McLeish’s side had been over the top after their 4-0 defeat to Roberto Martinez’s World Cup semi-finalists at Hampden on Friday night.
Scotland duly swept past Albania 2-0 in their Nations League Group C1 tie, with Naismith playing a key role in the first, an own goal by Berat Djimsiti, before heading the crucial second himself.
It was the perfect way to respond after Friday’s heaviest home loss since 1973.
And afterwards the 31-year-old said: ‘Some people got carried away with the defeat on Friday night against Belgium.
‘Reading some of the comments after the game, I was asking myself: “Did we not just play the team ranked No2 in the world?”
‘Belgium have some fantastic players, but we gave them three goals on the night.
‘It’s not as if they carved us open all night. We made mistakes against them.
‘But Albania was always the main event and it was a big game for a lot of the younger players.
‘So a lot of credit goes to those younger boys in the team.
‘They showed really good character to keep playing passes and we were the dominant team for most of the night.
‘It is still very early for this squad. A lot of the boys haven’t been together for long and this is still a young group of players.
‘There will be teething problems but we need to continue like this.’
It was a hugely eventful night for Naismith, who was not selected by McLeish in his initial squad.
The former Rangers and Norwich City striker had scored seven goals in eight games for Hearts this season — but was only called up after an injury to Oli McBurnie.
The in-form Tynecastle attacker continued his fine form, bouncing back from missing a first-half sitter from a yard by seeing a header deflected into the net for an own goal before capitalising on terrible marking to put the result beyond doubt.
Afterwards, he felt he had proved a point — and now hopes to be a central part of McLeish’s team.
‘I felt like I’d given myself as good a chance as possible of getting in the squad,’ he said.
‘I was left out but, with the call-offs, the manager phoned and asked me to come in.
‘When that happened, I thought: “I have to make an impression here or that’s me done, really”.
‘So I worked hard during the week in training.
‘If there was a point to be made and the manager wanted to know something, I told him what I thought.
‘The manager gave me the opportunity. I was rewarded with a start and I made an impact.
‘With the one that hit the post, I thought the defender was going to clear it but he’s left it.
‘I saw it at the last minute and just got what I could on it.
‘As you get older, you’ve got a bit more calmness about you in the box in those precise moments. That has definitely helped me this season.
‘I’ve been told the first was an own goal but I scored one and it was still a good start.
‘Did I look on tonight as potentially a last chance with Scotland?
‘You never know. Circumstances can change.
‘If I’d continued in the same way I started the season with Hearts, I would have put pressure on to get in the squad.
‘I am just grateful to get a chance and be part of a young squad starting out — just like me ten years ago.
‘It was a great win. It was really enjoyable to be part of that kind of performance.
‘And I don’t care what anybody says — we’ve won and we’re moving forward.’
Despite initially being overlooked by McLeish, retiring from international football never crossed Naismith’s mind.
‘No, I think I’ll always keep going,’ he said.
‘If it had an effect on my club career, then that’s when you maybe start to think.
‘I missed a bit of football last season and then enjoyed it towards the end of the season. So I’m just going to enjoy every minute of every game I play in.
‘I’m close to 50 caps now, but I need to keep doing it at club level to get into the national team.’
Kilmarnock right-back Stephen O’Donnell was outstanding in his first competitive match for Scotland and believes McLeish’s side should have racked up a more convincing victory.
‘We played some good stuff and we could have had a few more,’ he said. ‘It’s a great start to the competition. We were frustrated at half-time. Thankfully, the first goal came at the perfect time.
‘There were a lot of questions being asked after the Belgium game. But they are one of the best teams in the world.
‘I started to get tired in the last 20 minutes or so. I’m not used to playing in that system, but I was delighted to get the nod.
‘The boss has shown great faith in my and hopefully I’ll be in contention to make the next squad for Israel.’