McGhee is banking on Martin
MARK McGHEE last night insisted Derby County striker Chris Martin can be Scotland’s answer to England’s Rickie Lambert.
Striker Martin was a shock call-up to Gordon Strachan’s Scotland squad for the friendly with Nigeria later this month.
The 25-year-old has been in sensational form for his club and Scotland No 2 McGhee watched him destroy Brighton in the play-off semi-finals.
Martin has grabbed 25 goals this season and McGhee reckons there are plenty of similarities between him and Southampton star Lambert, who will go to the World Cup this summer.
McGhee said: ‘We looked at Chris Martin previously for the Poland game but he hadn’t had his clearance that he met our criteria to play for us.
‘Since then, he’s got that cleared and he was always going to be in this squad. I saw him playing for Derby in the play-off again and he scored two goals, led the line well.
‘When you look at Rickie Lambert, Chris is that type and we’ve not got that type — he is a great option for us. He brings the ball in, holds it up and brings people into play.’ McGhee — who watched Euro 2016 opponents Germany and Poland fight out a goalless draw in Hamburg this week — has been a frequent visitor to Derby’s Pride Park this season and Martin’s team-mates Craig Forsyth and Craig Bryson were also included for the Craven Cottage game.
The former Aberdeen and Motherwell manager added: ‘I’ve watched Craig Forsyth lots of times and I kept saying to Gordon that each time I watched him, he never disappointed me. He was very, very consistent with his performances for his team. The other night, he was even getting forward a lot, which won Derby a penalty.
‘Craig Bryson has got a goal threat in him as well. And you need someone like that in the middle of the park who can do that.
‘He started against Norway but he was playing wider than he normally likes. However he’ll be in his proper position this time.’