Scotland summons would cap eye-catching return to the spotlight for Naismith
STEVEN NAISMITH risked unwanted attention from the SFA last week as his snarling side showed up against Celtic. A petulant kick at Jonny Hayes and a scream in the injured Irish winger’s ear were the unflattering images to go with his winning performance.
He escaped retrospective sanction but a summons from Hampden can be expected in the coming days, the prospect of which brings no sense of dread to the Hearts forward’s door.
Naismith hasn’t merited a call-up for Scotland since Alex McLeish, who handed the then Kilmarnock prospect his first cap 11 years ago against Faroe Islands, was appointed manager for the second time.
In fact, he hasn’t featured for his country at all since a substitute appearance for Leigh Griffiths in ‘the Chris Martin game’ against Slovenia in March 2017.
Naismith’s last competitive start was a 2-2 draw with Poland in October 2015 which signalled the end of Euro 2016 qualifying hopes.
Only four weeks before that Hampden tie, he struck a hat-trick in a live TV English Premier League victory for Everton over Chelsea. There appeared no warning signs of a club career on the wane.
The signal for this slip from his cast-iron selection for Scotland was an £8million move to Norwich City. Relegation to the Championship followed and he dropped out of favour at Carrow Road.
That sharp decline in fortunes for the former Rangers striker meant no eyebrows were raised when squads were announced without his name cropping up, even as his displays became more incisive on loan at Hearts in the second half of last season.
Scotland coach James McFadden has hinted that exile is about to end, revealing that both he and McLeish had spoken with Naismith about his international ambitions.
They burn as brightly as ever, according to McFadden (right), whose second stint at Goodison was coming to an end when Naismith joined Everton in 2012.
‘Naisy has been forgotten about because he hasn’t played,’ said McFadden. ‘He went to Norwich and it didn’t work out for him. When he came up to Hearts last season he looked a bit short of sharpness, as if he needed a bit of time to get back up to speed.
‘But he’s managed to get a full pre-season now and he’s started the campaign well. He looks sharp. He’s experienced, he knows how to play a number of positions in international football.
‘And, like the manager has said since we came in, nobody will be discounted on age and he’s still only 31. As long as they’re playing well and eligible for Scotland, we’ll definitely have a look.
‘Steven has always wanted to continue playing for Scotland. There has never been any vibe to the contrary. It’s great to have guys like that.’
Since Celtic’s Griffiths suffered persistent injury problems and fell out of the first-choice slot at his club last term, Scotland were forced to improvise in attack.
Gordon Strachan kept faith with Martin before Malky Mackay tried Jason Cummings — now in League One with Peterborough. McLeish took a look at Oli McBurnie and converted Matt Phillips from winger to centre-forward.
Naismith, with 45 caps and seven goals, has played the role for Scotland before and is the type to relish the tough shift of making a nuisance of himself up there.
McFadden concedes ‘there are places up for grabs’ in the striker department ahead of the friendlies against Belgium and Portugal and UEFA Nations League tests against Albania and Israel this autumn.
There were no goals to celebrate from the postseason trek to Peru and Mexico. But McFadden is convinced the camp fulfilled a purpose that will serve Scotland well going into a new campaign where he believes they assume the role of favourites in their Nations League section.
‘The summer trip to South America has definitely fostered a team spirit,’ said the Tartan Army hero. ‘It was evident to us — the atmosphere was brilliant and the attitude of the players first class. There could have been things to moan about but not one did. ‘Their approach to everything we did was superb and that’s a credit to them. Hopefully that kind of spirit can carry on into the Nations League campaign. We’re playing against two teams in Israel and Albania who — unusually for us — we’re expected to beat. ‘We should beat them and finish above them. It’s a great chance for us to go and get a guaranteed play-off spot.’ The warm-up act is World Cup bronze medallists Belgium at Hampden on Friday, September 7, bringing McFadden up against his former Motherwell team-mate Roberto Martinez. The Spaniard was at Fir Park for a short spell as a 27-year-old in 2001. McFadden recalled: ‘He came in as an older head when I was a young player at Fir Park still trying to learn the game. He was a great guy, brilliant for the dressing room. Roberto was always approachable as a young player if you needed any advice and it’s great to see him doing well. ‘He was a tidy footballer and you can see why his teams play the way they do. His dress sense was appalling — but he didn’t think so. He thought everyone was jealous! ‘Back then he did a lot of punditry work for Sky on Spanish football. That was a sign that he’d become a manager. He was always interested in speaking about that side of the game. ‘I also played against his Swansea team and he started their footballing philosophy before Brendan Rodgers took it on. ‘His Belgium team will be tough game we might learn more against a team like this. We want to get to major tournaments and teams like Belgium will be there. No one would have been surprised if they’d won the World Cup. ‘We’ve just played Mexico, Peru and Costa Rica, teams who’ve been at the World Cup. We’d rather have a hard game than one which doesn’t give us the right preparation for the Nations League. ‘So it’s a fantastic opportunity for us to play against a team of that calibre. And we normally do well against the better sides.’
Roberto Martinez’s dress sense was appalling, but he just thought everyone was jealous!