McGhee offers some advice for McLeish’s striking conundrum
ALEX McLEISH has a striking conundrum to solve and the solution is not exactly staring the Scotland manager in the face. On Tuesday, the national coach names his squad for the campaigndefining double-header against Albania and Israel, a group that will be short of obvious firepower.
The knee injury sustained by Hearts’ Steven Naismith in last weekend’s Betfred Cup semi-final has ruled out McLeish’s first-choice Nations League forward for the foreseeable future, while Leigh Griffiths has not played since pulling out of the previous squad to concentrate on getting fit.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that while Griffiths is on the mend after a calf injury, he is unlikely to be match fit by the time Scotland kick-off against Albania in Shkoder in just under a fortnight’s time.
McLeish is likely to name Johnny Russell and Oli McBurnie among his strikers but between them they have not mustered a single goal in a combined 14 international appearances.
The SFA website lists James Forrest (above), newly-crowned Ladbrokes Player of the Month, among the strikers and Mark McGhee, who operated as assistant to McLeish’s predecessor Gordon Strachan, believes the on-form Celtic man is the most obvious solution.
‘Alex is going to have to be creative,’ said McGhee. ‘The first name that springs to mind is James Forrest, simply because he is in such good form.
‘You could use James in two or three different roles whether it’s up top, coming in off the side or just behind the front.’
Kilmarnock’s Greg Stewart is a potential candidate to step up after a fine start to the season on loan from Birmingham City — but there are also contenders in the English Championship.
West Brom’s Matt Phillips has previously been deployed by McLeish in a central role, while Sheffield Wednesday’s Steven Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes, currently on loan to Norwich, have been playing regularly and scoring.
McGhee sees plenty of Championship football and wonders whether McLeish might be tempted to return to Chris Martin, a favourite during the Strachan era. Martin, who turned 30 today, is currently on loan at Hull from Derby and is yet to score this season.
‘The thing about Chris Martin is that he allows you to shape a team,’ says McGhee. ‘If you want to get Ryan Fraser and James Forrest involved off the flanks, then Chris might be the man to do it.
‘He holds the ball up, wins you free-kicks and is a pest. You don’t need him to be the one scoring the goals.
‘And bringing him in might just give him that lift to get him going.’
A different style of player, Rhodes has also caught McGhee’s eye this term. Questions have been asked about his ability to step up to international football but McGhee believes the double-header might be tailor-made for his abilities.
He added: ‘We’re not playing Germany or France. These are two sides who are, in effect, Championship teams.
‘Jordan has shown over the years that he can score at that level, so maybe now is the time to give him a shot. I’m sure Alex will be exploring and weighing up all of these options.’