The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Armstrong is reassured by Scots’ depth
Former Dundee United midfielder Stuart Armstrong believes Scotland have shown they have the strength in depth to navigate their upcoming two games in the space of four days.
The Scots kicked off their Nations League campaign with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Armenia at Hampden Park on Wednesday.
Steve Clarke’s men will now face Republic of Ireland in Dublin tomorrow, followed by a return trip to Armenia on Tuesday.
Clarke made six changes to the side which was defeated 3-1 by Ukraine in last week’s World Cup play-off match.
Of the players coming in, Anthony Ralston and Scott Mckenna netted their first national team goals to help the Scots to victory.
Armstrong, who left Tannadice for Celtic in January 2015, says the array of options at Clarke’s disposal has never been stronger.
The Southampton midfielder said: “When you want to freshen up the team, which you have to when the fixtures are so tight, the quality of the team doesn’t weaken. That is a great thing.
“We have another two fixtures to look forward to and the rotation of the squad is very important.
“I don’t think they’re coming on as fresh faces, you can see the quality when they do come on and impact they have on the team. I have spoken about it before, the squad depth is great, probably the best I have ever seen.
“A lot of individuals are now excelling at their own club. That is only all the more better for the country.”
The pain of missing out on a World Cup place has not thwarted Armstrong’s belief in the Scotland squad, with a place at the Euro 2024 finals in Germany the next target.
Armstrong added: “In the past we have shown what a good squad we can be. We have shown that we can grind out performances, grind out wins, when we have had to.
“It can’t be perfect all the time, which of course was the case last week.
“Sometimes when you have a disappointment you need to show that you are a good team and you have a lot of good players. We certainly do have that in this Scotland team.
“There is a big belief in the squad, there is a lot of togetherness.
“The group is excellent, everyone believes in ourselves and what we can achieve, and hopefully we can reach another major tournament.”
At 30, Armstrong is among the seasoned campaigners in the set-up.
With 34 caps to his name, the former Celtic and Dundee United player hopes he can impart his experience upon some of the more youthful members of Clarke’s squad.
He added: “I don’t feel too different than I did years ago, but obviously when I look around and see a lot of young players and a lot of young faces, then I
realise I am a little bit older now.
“I just try and help out the team when I can with a little bit of experience and just try to do my job when I am asked. I think as an attacking player, I can only speak for myself. I just try and do as much as I can when I am on the pitch.
“Hopefully, that influences the players around me. It was good to see Tony Ralston playing behind me last night. You can see how far he has come as a football player.
“I thought he was excellent. He took his goal magnificently well.
“I think there is a nice blend in the team at the moment with experience and youthful energy.”
Debutant Ross Stewart was pleased to give the Tartan Army reason to cheer again, following the disappointment at last week’s World Cup play-off defeat to Ukraine.
The Sunderland forward, who came on as a late substitute, said: “Obviously last week was very disappointing and it was all about showing character. The boys did that really well.
“It was a very comfortable and really professional victory. The only thing is that we were probably unlucky not to get a couple of more goals.
“The fans came out and supported us in their numbers again. The boys are very thankful for that
and I have no doubt we will see them in Ireland and probably see them in Armenia as well. They play a big part as well and it was great to send them home with a victory.”
Stewart, 25, is hoping for more game time and another good result.
He added: “It has certainly whetted the appetite. Ireland is obviously going to be a tough game away from home.
“They have lost their first games, so obviously they’ll be wanting a reaction as well.
“But we know what we have got in that dressing room and it is certainly a game that we will be going over to try and win.”