It is disrespectful to talk about the future for Gordon
SFA chief executive Stewart Regan has claimed it is ‘disrespectful’ to speculate over Gordon Strachan’s position as Scotland manager.
Strachan has been widely criticised following a dismal international double-header earlier this month, which saw his team take only one point from World Cup qualifiers against Lithuania and Slovakia.
The aftermath saw the 59year-old hold talks with the SFA and he was understood to be considering his future.
He has since decided to remain in charge and will be at the helm when Scotland face England in a pivotal qualifier at Wembley on November 11.
Defeat in that match would leave Strachan’s side with just four points from their opening four qualifiers — and the nation’s dream of reaching the 2018 World Cup in tatters.
Despite the intense pressure on the manager and the questionable logic of his future hinging on winning away from home against the top seeds in Group F, Regan believes the match represents a chance to revive hopes of qualification.
‘We are only three games into the campaign,’ he said. ‘If we win at Wembley, we’re right back in the mix. I think it’s a little bit disrespectful to be talking about a manager’s contract so early in a campaign.
‘There are 21 points still to play for. It’s absolutely about getting the campaign back on track, starting at Wembley on November 11.
‘No manager is going to go into a game believing he’s going to get beat. No team wants to prepare for one of the biggest games in the campaign with a negative mindset, so Gordon and the squad will be going into that game believing we can get a result.
‘It happened in 1999. There’s no reason why it can’t happen again.
‘We had a discussion (after the Slovakia defeat), but not about whether Gordon would continu. He is under contract.
‘The discussion was about the performance, not just in Slovakia, but about the first three games. Nobody was more disappointed than Gordon.
‘He felt we should have been in a better place after three games. Results have gone our way, in many ways, in other games.
‘As we’ve seen with the performances of Slovenia and Lithuania, anyone can take points off anyone else in this group. It’s up to us now to go and get a result and get our campaign back on the rails.’
Pressed on whether he believes Strachan remains the best man for the job, Regan replied: ‘It’s all about results, ultimately. Results will determine our success and what happens as far as Scotland is concerned.’
Given the manner in which Scotland’s bid to reach Euro 2016 collapsed, and with that form having subsequently bled into the current campaign, there are many within the Tartan Army who believe Strachan’s time is already up.
‘We had a discussion at the end of the last campaign,’ added Regan. ‘The fans made it clear they were backing Gordon (after the final qualifier in Gibraltar). I think he was pleased to get that reassurance.
‘We had a discussion about whether it was right for him to lead another campaign and he was absolutely up for it. The board were fully supportive of Gordon taking the team forward.
‘We felt we had made considerable progress and, for that reason, he has led us into this campaign. We’d like to be in a better position, but there’s still 21 points to play for and we’ll be determined to get as many as those as we can.’
Asked if he sensed there had been a lessening of support for Strachan after the recent qualifiers against Lithuania and Slovakia, Regan said: ‘Football is that kind of game. It’s all about performances.
‘You see that week in, week out. If teams perform, they have support. If they don’t, they have criticism. Scotland and Gordon are no different. He knows the fans crave success.
‘We need to get a result against England and get our campaign back on track. We’re only one point off the play-off place, we’re three points off the top and, if Gordon goes down to Wembley and gets a result, the fans will be 100-per-cent behind him. I’m confident of that.’