Clarke: We’ve come so far. Let’s not blow it now
Steve Clarke will this week charge his players with taking another giant step towards reaching the 2022 World Cup Finals.
Winners of their last four qualifiers, Scotland will clinch their place in the play-offs if they can stretch that run to five in Moldova on Friday night.
And even if they slip up, they know they will have another shot at the prize when Denmark visit Hampden three days later.
Yet, as delighted as the Scotland manager has been with the progress his side has made in the two years since losing four consecutive Euro qualifiers, culminating in a 4-0 drubbing by Russia, Clarke warns they could still snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
“Since a night long ago in Moscow, we have been on the right path,” the national boss said.
“We spoke as a group that night and said: ‘Right, this has to be the lowest point’.
“From there, we have made slow, but steady, progress.
“Even when we got a little bit of criticism for only getting five points from the first three games, I said: ‘Wait and see where we are in November’.
“Everyone wants to tell you what to do – especially when it is a national-team job – but you just have to close your ears and plough on. You have to do what you believe in.
“We wanted to get to this stage with a realistic chance of qualifying for the World Cup Finals, and we have done that.
“It has been good, but there is always that bit in the back of your mind that says: ‘We are Scotland, don’t trip up now’.
“Now we need to finish the job. Do that, and then we can be sit and talk about the play-offs in March.”
As much as he shares the trepidation of a seasoned Tartan Army regular for what might be around the corner, the 58-year-old is bullish about a group that has shown a real unity of purpose.
“I keep telling people that these players are desperate to go to the World Cup with Scotland,” he said.
“We also have a coach who is desperate to go, and that is a pretty potent mix.”
Arguably the best example of what he is talking about lies in the successful resolution of the Andy Robertson/Kieran Tierney conundrum, which used to drive the country to distraction.
“I always try to put Andy and Kieran together because they are both left-backs,” said the Scotland boss, who will give the latter every chance to show he has shrugged off his issue with a bruised ankle.
“Andy is playing at left wingback, which is slightly out of position, and Kieran at left centreback, which is also slightly out of position for him.
“But both of them approach those roles with great professionalism. You see that the more they have played together, the better the dynamic has been on our left-hand side.
“They have a little switch when Kieran goes forward as an overlapping centre-half, and Andy drops into centre-back.
“So I think we’ve found a reasonable solution with both players slightly out of position, but still giving everything and playing well for their country.
“It’s been a good compromise. But, listen – good players know how to play.
“They are not naïve enough to think they can both bomb forward at the same time.
“You always need to have cover. If Andy has already gone, Kieran won’t go on a crazy overlap. Well, maybe he will once or twice! But not very often.”
If the last comment was delivered with a smile, Clarke is serious about the need for his players to be disciplined on Friday night.
“I have looked at Moldova a lot between the camps, and they are decent,” he said “They are well-organised, and will be hard to beat on their own patch.
“I have looked at what have done against Israel, and what we can do to counter them.
“In the last game, I played one sitting midfielder, with John McGinn and Ryan Christie pushing on behind two strikers.
“It worked well to a point, but we did not get the goal return we hoped for. So I will maybe have another little tweak over there.
“They have a nice stadium, tight and compact. It looks like a good place to play, and I don’t think the weather will be so dramatic at this time of year.
“We just have to go there, deal with whatever conditions we encounter, and make sure we get the result.
“That is always the mentality I have had during my career.”