Clarke backs Scotland to improve
STEVE Clarke last night insisted Scotland will improve before their Euro 2020 playoff semi-final next month after watching his side held to a 1-1 draw by Israel in their opening Nations League game.
A second-half Eran Zahavi strike for the visitors cancelled out a first-half Ryan Christie penalty at an empty Hampden and meant the national team only picked up a point from the Group B2 match.
The home side, playing for the first time since last November, only managed a single shot on target from open play during the course of the 90 minutes. However, Clarke, who switched to a three-man defence to get Kieran Tierney and Andy Robertson into his starting line-up, feels his men, who take on the same opponents in the play-off next month, will benefit greatly from the run-out.
“We were reasonably pleased,” he said. “There was obviously a slight tweak to the system and we only had three days’ training to work on it. The lads took a lot on board.
“There were some good things, some bad things obviously. It was disappointing to lose the goal in the second-half when I thought we had reasonable control of the game defensively.
“I was just looking to give us another option and a different way to play at certain times against certain teams. It just seemed like a good game to try.
“Kieran has been playing very well in that position and I thought he acquitted himself really well tonight as well along with Scott McKenna and Scott McTominay.”
Clarke handed QPR striker Lyndon Dykes his debut up front and was impressed with how the 6ft 2in forward played in his first international match.
“I thought he was excellent,” he said. “He is a strong boy, he gives us a good option.”