We’ll need a back line who will defend our goal with their lives

In the first of his exclusive columns, Derek McInnes pores over the selection dilemmas facing Scotland boss Clarke

JUST over a week from the big kick-off, I still think there are two or three starting jerseys up for grabs in this Scotland team. Wednesday’s performance against the Netherlands was very encouraging. I thought there was a good shape about us and we scored two good-quality goals.

Steve Clarke will not have wanted to go into the tournament on the back of a couple of sore results but with that 2-2 draw in the bag he can afford to be a bit more experimental in this afternoon’s second friendly against Luxembourg.

Might we get a chance to see Billy Gilmour from the off? I hope so. I’m not saying he should start at the tournament but, on the back of Chelsea’s Champions League win, this would be a great chance to give him a run-out in midfield alongside Scott McTominay.

Behind that, I think there are two obvious questions surrounding the defence. We’ve spent such a long time on the conundrum of how to fit Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney into the same team but that issue has now been resolved.

Tierney was excellent against the Dutch. We’ve seen it with Arsenal — that fluency he brings to the left of the back three is perfect.

You don’t want three big wooden

centre-halves, the guys

We’ve got guys who play at the top level, there’s no need to be fearful

on the outside must be comfortable going into wide areas, places that traditional centre-halves don’t go.

Tierney is so good as that raiding wide player and we’re lucky to have both him and Robertson on that flank.

The right side is not quite so clear. Steve has said that McTominay is going to be a central midfielder for this tournament and that’s only right due to the way he has been playing for Manchester United. But if he is not an option for the right of the three, we are a bit restricted.

Steve got another look at Jack Hendry on Wednesday and for most of that performance he will have been pleased with what he got.

Hendry is coming off the back of a good season in Belgium where he has been recognised as a good player. But like most defenders who can play it’s about getting the balance right — it’s not just about stepping in, breaking the lines and playing passes. Or even scoring a goal like he did on Wednesday night.

You also need to be a hard-nosed defender who is strong and would do anything to keep the ball out of his own net.

When the pressure comes and the ball comes into our box we will need people who are going to defend that goal with their lives. Guys who will sniff danger, make decisions and really have that edge. Maybe that’s something Jack still needs to improve on.

The thing is, with Tierney nailed down for that left side, all our remaining defenders look to be in competition for that central role.

Declan Gallagher does his best work centrally, so is probably not an option for the right. You’ve then got Scott McKenna and Liam Cooper, who are both left-sided.

That leaves Grant Hanley (right) and we may see him against Luxembourg. He has had a good season for Norwich and I would like to see him play right of the three, just to satisfy my own curiosity.

Stephen O’Donnell could maybe do it but I think with the calibre of opposition at the Euros, especially against England and Croatia, you might need him at right wing-back simply because we’re less likely to dominate possession.

At Aberdeen, we elected to play with wingers as wing-backs. Some managers play a full-back on one side and a winger on the other to get a bit of balance. Others like Callum Davidson at St Johnstone play with two out-and-out full-backs.

James Forrest did absolutely fine against the Dutch. He is a ball carrier and has more to offer in the final third but Stephen will potentially make better decisions when called on defensively. So I think O’Donnell will win that fight.

Similarly, I think David Marshall has earned Steve’s loyalty and will be the goalkeeper. I’ve always loved Craig Gordon, he has so many great attributes and has become better at certain things with experience.

But Marshall has done so well for Steve and that body of work will be enough for him to start.

At the other end of the pitch, there is a decision to be made. Lyndon Dykes is a brilliant option for us, very bullish.

I don’t think he is the type who likes to play friendlies as he thrives on physical contact. With an overofficious referee, he had to think twice regarding some of his challenges during the game on Wednesday.

He’s done superbly for Steve in the qualifiers but it’s great to now have Che Adams on board, someone who is playing at a higher level with Southampton.

Kevin Nisbet took his goal so well, too. He has to watch that ball from Robertson all the way, the finish was excellent.

Out of all our strikers, you would want that type of chance to fall to Nisbet. And that goal will have done him the world of good.

I think it will land on Dykes or

Adams to lead the line and Steve also has the option to go with both.

That leaves the final issue of who plays just behind. We will probably go with that box in midfield — two deep with Callum McGregor next to McTominay and two ahead of that.

Balance is vital. Being left-footed helps McGregor’s case but also he handles the ball so well and these are going to be technical games. I do think Gilmour is capable of doing something similar in there and I don’t think anything would faze him. Since Thomas Tuchel’s arrival, Chelsea have been playing with two sitting midfielders in front of a three, so he knows that position. But, for now, McGregor and McTominay are our two best in that system.

There’s great competition for those two roles off the striker. You have John McGinn, David Turnbull, Stuart Armstrong, Ryan Fraser, Ryan Christie and even Forrest.

Steve may wish to play McGinn deeper but I like him with the handbrake off, when he can rampage about the pitch.

The best part of his game comes through when he plays without that restriction, so I think he definitely plays in one of those roles behind the main striker.

Fraser is maybe not match sharp and Turnbull is a little bit further behind, having only just come into the squad. So I think it’s between Armstrong and Christie.

They are very different. I love Ryan Christie. I had him at Aberdeen and watched him really kick on at Celtic. And he’s another who has done a lot for Steve.

But I like seeing Armstrong play with Adams at Southampton. He will come and collect, then he goes and commits people. He gets defenders running towards their own goal with that acceleration.

He has a goal in him and he is a good counter-attacker. Both McGinn and Ryan are lefties, so maybe the balance is a little bit better with Armstrong.

The situation surrounding Covid forced Steve’s hand in terms of how he lined up against the Netherlands but I thought we had a good shape about us.

I think he would be looking for a wee bit more connection from his front two to link the play but we pressed at the right times and counter-attacked well, too.

Considering the troubles going into the game it was a good exercise, but the next seven days will be all about stepping things up towards tournament mode.

We’ve got players from Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United all operating at the highest level for their clubs. There’s no reason for us to be fearful.