The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Plenty of options for Scotland boss
Scotland Women begin their defence of the Pinatar Cup against Wales, giving Pedro Martinez Losa another chance to assess his squad.
Martinez Losa’s side will play three games over six days, with their next opponents being Slovakia or Belgium, depending on the result of that game.
Although the Pinatar Cup is an invitational friendly tournament, it will be a blow for Scotland that Erin Cuthbert has had to pull out due to injury.
Since Martinez Losa took charge, the Chelsea forward has been one of the standout performers and it will be interesting to see how he sets up without her.
Scotland still have the likes of Claire Emslie, Caroline Weir and Stonehaven’s Christy Grimshaw who all have their strengths.
It will be interesting to see what kind of impact Weir has during this camp as we’ve yet to see the form Man City and Scotland fans know she can reach under Martinez Losa’s reign.
Her Man City stats show what she is capable of, with offensive duels and passes into the final third her outstanding contributions.
But moving play into the final third means nothing without being clinical in front of goal which Martinez Losa’s Scotland have struggled with.
Lizzie Arnot has yet to add to her 37 Scotland appearances since the Spaniard took over but her form for Rangers is hard to ignore. Arnot has scored 13 goals in the league this season – second only to Celtic’s Charlie Wellings.
And she’s provided assists for Martinez Losa’s preferred striker Jane Ross at Rangers.
Another player deserving of more game time in a Scotland shirt is Lana Clelland who plays for Serie A’s Sassuolo.
She has scored 10 goals in 14 games this season and Martinez Losa has used her as a substitute in several matches. Her cross against Ukraine led to Abi Harrison’s 93rd minute leveller to keep Scotland’s World Cup qualifying hopes alive.
The Spaniard has named uncapped players in his prior three camps, and has done so again, as goalkeepers Eartha Cumings and Rachael Johnstone, and Celtic captain Kelly Clark all await the nod.
Martinez Losa is clearly an admirer of fellow Spaniard Fran Alonso’s goalkeeping set-up at Celtic, as Johnstone, 17, received her first call-up to the senior squad after club-mate Chloe Logan had to drop out due to injury.
The Isle of Lewis teen joins the goalkeeping contingent that includes Cumings, who plays her club football in the FA Women’s Championship with Charlton Athletic.
Cumings has been named in each of Martinez Losa’s squads, but has yet to play as Lee Alexander remains the number one choice with Jenna Fife as second option.
But the fact Martinez Losa brought in another goalkeeper when Logan dropped out despite having three at his disposal, suggests he plans to rotate them. There is a case for Johnstone and Cumings to debut having performed well at their clubs this season.
Celtic captain Clark may also debut in Spain after a solid season in SWPL 1 and her 200th appearance for Celtic. And while she’s not the sole answer to the defensive issues, she might give some food for thought to the Scotland boss.
Martinez Losa has often opted for Aberdeen’s Rachel Corsie and Jen Beattie as his centre-halves, but Clark and Sophie Howard are further options.
With two vital World Cup qualifiers in April, it would be no surprise to see Clark make her debut at some point during the Pinatar Cup.