PALMER CLAIMS STANDARDS SLIPPED UNDER McLEISH

ALEX McLEISH’S standards as Scotland manager were openly called into question after Sheffield Wednesday full-back Liam Palmer claimed the camp has been more ‘professional’ since Steve Clarke took charge. Tasked with taking the national side for a second time in February of last year, former Rangers and Aston Villa manager McLeish was relieved of his duties after just 14 months, following a dismal start to the Euro 2020 qualifiers. Ex-Kilmarnock boss Clarke has fared little better so far, with victories over Cyprus and San Marino bookending a run of four straight defeats, which have rendered the concluding group games with the Cypriots and Kazakhstan dead rubbers. However, in what will be seen as a damning assessment of the previous regime, 28-year-old Palmer — who made his international bow in the 3-0 humiliation in Kazakhstan in March — insisted there had been a marked difference in the approach to small but important details since there was a change at the helm. ‘I was pleased to make my debut but it wasn’t ideal circumstances,’ he recalled of that heavy loss in Nur-Sultan. ‘Then I had to sit the next one out against

San Marino. The manager changed after that and, since the new manager has come in, it’s been a lot more professional. ‘In the first camp when McLeish was in charge, that is what I’d expected it would be like. Now we do things the right way. ‘It’s things around the hotel like everybody eating together and wearing trainers, not flip-flops. It’s those type of things that make it a bit more professional. ‘It might sound small but waiting to all go to training together and all coming off together feeds into what you do on the pitch. They make a difference.’ Like McLeish, Clarke has had to contend with a plethora of call-offs for each assignment he has faced. After the retirements from international football of Robert Snodgrass and Matt Ritchie, and Arsenal’s refusal to release Kieran Tierney, preparations for tomorrow’s match in Nicosia have been further hampered by the withdrawals of Andy Robertson, Liam Cooper, Ryan Fraser and Scott Mc Tominay. Asked if the volume of players unavailable pointed to a general reluctance to play for the national team, Palmer said: ‘I can only speak for myself but that’s not the case. ‘You play for yourself, your family and your country. You’ve got pride and standards that drive you.’