SNODGRASS EAGER TO REPAY STRACHAN
ROBERT SNODGRASS admits he is determined to reward Gordon Strachan’s loyalty in the forthcoming World Cup qualification double-header. The 29-year-old was included in the squad to face Lithuania and Malta despite being frozen out of the first-team picture at West Ham United. He has now ended an unhappy seven months under Slaven Bilic by agreeing a season-long loan deal with Aston Villa in the English Championship. Strachan provided counsel ahead of that move, with Snodgrass keen to offer payback by helping the national squad secure a six-point haul. ‘Of course, obviously if you are playing it is something you have got in your mind,’ said Snodgrass. ‘This is what it is all
about. Match fitness is something you need and I have not had any games in three weeks or something, just pre-season games. ‘But I am fit in myself, one of the fittest conditions I have ever been in, because I knew I was coming back and I was ready for that challenge. ‘I think every one of us has something to prove with what is at stake. We can’t afford any more slip-ups, we need to win. We need to try to win every game to try to give ourselves the best possible chance. ‘People are quick to think if you are not playing you are a bad player and it is not that at all. ‘(Gordon Strachan) is one of the guys I phoned (when leaving West Ham). I said to him that I respected him: “You are a good man and you will tell me the truth. Am I making the right decision?” ‘He said: “Well, you’re not playing games and you can’t be happy not playing games. You need to play games and get back to the level you were showing in the first part of the season in the Premier League”.’ Meanwhile, Norwich City have agreed what is believed to be a £3.5million fee with Newcastle United for Scotland defender Grant Hanley. Hanley was given permission to leave the Scotland camp during preparations for Friday’s match in Lithuania to have a medical with the Carrow Road club. The 25-year-old has not featured for the Magpies in the Premier League since they returned to the top flight this term and does not appear to be in the first-team plans of manager Rafa Benitez. Hanley joined Newcastle from Blackburn Rovers for £5.5m last summer but only played a minor role in their Championship title success. Although he has four years left on his contract, the 27-times-capped Scotland international now looks set for an immediate return to England’s second tier.