RIGHT ANSWER IS RIGHT HERE

Strachan says his youngsters need only look to senior stars for guidance

They don’t have to ask fitness coaches or those gurus or nutritionists

THE first steps were far from tentative. Confident and combative, t hese were international debuts imbued with merit. Now, however, the challenge for John McGinn and Kieran Tierney becomes a little different. How do they build upon that promise to ensure they can go the distance as Scotland players?

Gordon Strachan sees a simple answer. A measured sceptic of those who would seek to baffle with sports science and its endless complications, t he Scotland manager believes his youthful recruits need only look towards some of their team- mates on Tuesday night.

There they will find role models, worthy educators in the fine art of maximising a career.

Strachan sees the right attitude within McGinn and Tierney. The same goes for Oliver Burke, the 18-year- old Nottingham Forest winger given an eight- minute cameo against Denmark. For all, it should be about looking, listening and learning.

‘Mentally they know they can handle it, that’s no problem now,’ said Strachan. ‘They have to keep the physical side now.

‘But they know what is required when you play against top, top players. It’s about knowing where you have to push yourself to get a maximum.

‘They could do worse than watch Shaun Maloney and ask him: “How did you get here at 33 and still be as strong?”.

‘They don’t need to ask fitness coaches or all those gurus or nutritionists. You ask the people who have been there.

‘They’ll then find out they need to train harder than everybody else. They’ll be told: “I put more into the game than anybody”. That’s it. I’ve seen players drink gallons of water and be rotten. I mean, seriously.

‘But John and Kieran have humility a s much as anything. I watched John with the Under-21s and saw it.

‘I watched the ones who want to get better, the ones with humility but a bit of drive at the same time.

‘Oliver Burke, too. He’s a quiet l ad but what a determination he’s got. When he first walked in, I said: “He can’t be Scottish when he’s that size”.’

Burke showed a little flash of his power and pace with one surge to the bye-line, by which point Tierney, 18, and McGinn, 21, had already confirmed their credentials.

Introducing genuine youth inevitably excites supporters praying that a new generation can help sweep away a lengthy history of failure in terms of reaching major tournaments.

Strachan (below), though, is not about to launch some revolution to banish the old guard.

‘They’ll only get their chance if t hey’re good enough,’ he cautioned. ‘I’m not going to just fill up the squad with them.

‘ Gordon Greer at 35 was as outstanding as them on Tuesday night. Craig Gordon was as outstanding as them. Don’t get too excited for them.

‘But what we’ve seen tonight and from last Thursday night (the 1-0 win in the Czech Republic) is three bonuses. That’s wonderful.

‘Over in Prague, we also had Snoddy (Robert Snodgrass) back. Remember, we changed the team completely f r om t he Czech Republic and it’s not easy to do that, you know.

‘It was a bit of a gamble but I had to find things out. You can’t just go along all the time. In management you sometimes have to make big decisions.

‘But it worked for us everywhere, apart from the performance level we got out there on Tuesday night. But I know why that was.’

Captain Scott Brown helped McGinn through at Hampden, looking a little more like himself in the process. He turns 31 in the summer, while Darren Fletcher — who skippered the national side in Prague — is already 32.

Fast forward to a successful bid to make Russia 2018 and both would obviously be a further two years older. Strachan, though, is adamant that age doesn’t matter. ‘It can’t (matter),’ he continued. ‘ If Tony Pulis ( West Brom boss) i s picking Darren and Ronny (Deila, Celtic manager) is picking Scott — and they’re playing at the highest level — then I’ll pick them. ‘But don’t forget, I have James McArthur, too. He is a terrific player. And James Morrison, terrific. I have players who haven’t played in these two games and are terrific. I’ve got Snoddy just coming back, terrific. ‘ I don’t want our players to start calling themselves old at 30. That’s not old, that’s not old for top players.

‘When you’re 29 and you have a bad game, then people just say you’ve had a bad game. When you hit 30, people say your legs have gone. That’s the perception.

‘Listen, it’s about fitness levels and I see no reason why people can’t maintain their fitness levels as midfield players until they’re 35 and 36. We have Gordon Greer at 35, we had Davie Weir here at whatever age.

‘It shouldn’t be a barrier, as long as you’re training to a maximum.

‘Me? I did it because we didn’t have anybody else to play in the Coventry team. But fitness was the be-all and end-all.’

Brown has reached the 50- cap mark and remains determined to lead from the front. He added his own praise for both McGinn and club colleague Tierney, deflecting claims the Hibs midfielder was similar to himself in his younger days.

‘ He’s got a touch ,’ laughed Brown. ‘When I was younger, I was more direct than I am now and it’s all about learning the game.

‘John’s doing that under Alan Stubbs at Hibs and has improved in the last season because he’s working with a t op - quality manager. Working at this level with Gordon Strachan is going to help him even more.

‘The first five to 10 minutes of your debut are always very emotional, but he held it together well.

‘I’ve seen him play lots of times. He’s very direct, with so much energy, and it’s great to have him in the squad. He’s a great guy as well and has the makings of a top-quality player.

‘Kieran continues to improve every week, nothing fazes him whatsoever. He’s willing to tackle anyone and his will to win is brilliant. That’s what makes him a top-quality player as well. It’s great we’ve got youth coming through.’