Snoddy trusts the
THE emphasis has been very much on bringing through the Scotland stars of the future ever since Alex McLeish was appointed manager of the national side for a second time back in February.
A raft of promising young players – including, to name a handful, Jack Hendry, Oliver McBurnie, Dylan McGeouch, Scott McKenna and Scott McTominay – have been given their chance at international level with varying degrees of success in the four friendly games McLeish has overseen.
Meanwhile, the likes of Ikechi Anya, Barry Bannan, Christophe Berra, Darren and Steven Fletcher, Chris Martin, James Morrison and Matt Ritchie, mainstays for their country under Gordon Strachan, have all been overlooked.
Yet, Robert Snodgrass remains, despite being left out of the initial squad for the Belgium and Albania double header due to the serious family matter he was dealing with, very much part of the plans.
And Snodgrass, who turns 31 on Friday when Scotland take on Belgium in a friendly at Hampden, is hopeful the experience he has will help the newcomers who have emerged in the past six months to establish themselves in the months ahead.
Particularly now he is, after one of the most turbulent, not to mention traumatic, spells of his professional career, playing regularly in the Premier League in England under no less a figure than Manuel Pellegrini at West Ham.
The Glaswegian was delighted when the London club paid Hull a cool £10 million for his services at the beginning of last year and was relishing playing for them in the top flight down south.
But he quickly discovered that Slaven Bilic, who signed him, had been unaware of where he played and he was soon deploying him out of position.
Worse, though, was to follow. David Sullivan, the chairman, publicly revealed that his children had pleaded with him not to sign Snodgrass. Karren Brady, the vice-chairman, followed that revelation up by describing his acquisition as “not exactly a triumph”.
However, after a successful loan spell at Aston Villa in the Championship last season, he returned to West Ham this summer hopeful of turning the situation around and he has quickly impressed Pellegrini (inset).
Things may not have gone according to plan for the London Stadium club this term – they are bottom of the league table after losing their first four fixtures – but Snodgrass personally has relished being involved again and has expressed hope Scotland will ultimately benefit in future.
“I’m working with one of the best managers,” he said. “He’s won the Premier League [with Manchester City] and managed in La Liga and I can only learn from people like that. He’s been great with me, he’s always talking to me. That was the case from the off.
“I feel as though this is it starting because under Bilic, there wasn’t a lot of communication and it was difficult. I wasn’t really playing in the right position, where he signed me for. But he was always a good guy, he was always nice as were all his staff, even when I left to go to Aston Villa they were always good with me.
“So I always had that soft spot and always wanted to go back and do well. That’s all I’ve wanted to do wherever I’ve been.”
Snodgrass also revealed that a discussion with Sullivan had put the controversy that erupted as a result of his ill-judged comments to bed. “We sorted that,” he said. “I spoke to the chairman and put that stuff on the backburner.”
The 25-times capped 30-year-old is now keen to put the uncertainty about his future with Scotland in the past. He was upset to hear people questioning his commitment to his country during his time out of the national team. He is determined to help his country reach the Euro 2020 finals.
The former Leeds United, Norwich City and Hull man is hopeful the level he is now playing at – only Stuart Armstrong of Southampton, Ryan Fraser of Bournemouth, Kevin McDonald of Fulham, McTominay of Manchester United, Callum Paterson of Cardiff and Andy Robertson of Liverpool in the