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Potential squad for Belgium


andyD

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Since there will be barely a month of football before the belgium game, I'm curious who people think should make the squad for the belgium friendly on sept 7th. For me there's actaully quite a few from the recent squad that makes it thru..

Gordon (Celtic), McGregor (Rangers), McLaughlin (Hearts)

Paterson (Cardiff), O'Donnell (Kilmarknock), Robertson (Liverpool), Tierney (Celtic), Mulgrew (Blackburn), McKenna (Aberdeen), Hendry (Celtic), Lindsay (Barnsley

McTominay (Man Utd), McDonald (Fulham), Shinnie (Aberdeen), Armstrong (Celtic), McGregor (Celtic), Bannan (Sheff Wed), Fraser (Bournemouth), Russell (Kansas City), Burke (West Brom), Snodgrass (West Ham)

Griffiths (Celtic), McBurnie (Swansea)

So that's 10 from the recent squad. There's some flexability in there, with Robertson potentially at left mid if we're 4 at the back. Shinnie can be cover for left back if we do that. Russell can play anywhere across the front. I've put Bannan in as he's been in really good club form and was never as bad as McGinn, McLean and McGeough were in the last two games. There's an argument for Fleck in place of him, he does off decent set piece delivery and i've always thought Griffiths on corners was a waste, but Bannan is better from open play.

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I would include James Forrest, John Mcginn, Tom Cairney, James Mccarthur, Matt Phllips and Matt Ritchie.

Goodbye to Greame Shinnie and Kev Macdonald. 

No way he can call up Liam Lindsay, he's not picked him once yet. Barry Bannan... Are you having a laugh?? :lol:

 

 

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46 minutes ago, andyD said:

Since there will be barely a month of football before the belgium game, I'm curious who people think should make the squad for the belgium friendly on sept 7th. For me there's actaully quite a few from the recent squad that makes it thru..

Gordon (Celtic), McGregor (Rangers), McLaughlin (Hearts)

Paterson (Cardiff), O'Donnell (Kilmarknock), Robertson (Liverpool), Tierney (Celtic), Mulgrew (Blackburn), McKenna (Aberdeen), Hendry (Celtic), Lindsay (Barnsley

McTominay (Man Utd), McDonald (Fulham), Shinnie (Aberdeen), Armstrong (Celtic), McGregor (Celtic), Bannan (Sheff Wed), Fraser (Bournemouth), Russell (Kansas City), Burke (West Brom), Snodgrass (West Ham)

Griffiths (Celtic), McBurnie (Swansea)

So that's 10 from the recent squad. There's some flexability in there, with Robertson potentially at left mid if we're 4 at the back. Shinnie can be cover for left back if we do that. Russell can play anywhere across the front. I've put Bannan in as he's been in really good club form and was never as bad as McGinn, McLean and McGeough were in the last two games. There's an argument for Fleck in place of him, he does off decent set piece delivery and i've always thought Griffiths on corners was a waste, but Bannan is better from open play.

 

No Forrest? He'll be an automatic starter.

Cairney a shoe in too.

Edited by Squirrelhumper
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1 hour ago, Squirrelhumper said:

No Forrest? He'll be an automatic starter.

Cairney a shoe in too.

My problem with both is that they just don't seem to be the same players when they're wearing a dark blue shirt.

Fraser looks better at this level than Forrest does, no question. Burke has made a strong case for stepping up at Toulon, while Russell has earnt it against Mexcio, and can double as a 2nd striker. Snod has had a great season, offers something different and should be back in contention at West Ham under Pellegrini. You're probably right that we'll take, and start, Forrest.. but i can't see anything other than him once again not doing very much.

Cairney.. a 'premier league player' now, so i agree he'll probably be an auto include, but again we've never seen the best of him for Scotland. Armstrong and McGregor are the obvious 2, which leaves Cairney on the bench already. Bannan's been excellent at club level for a couple of seasons now, and has earnt another opportunity imo.

So yeah, I agree with you that Cairney and Forrest will probably be called up.. but I wouldn't pick them. You?

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8 minutes ago, andyD said:

My problem with both is that they just don't seem to be the same players when they're wearing a dark blue shirt.

Fraser looks better at this level than Forrest does, no question. Burke has made a strong case for stepping up at Toulon, while Russell has earnt it against Mexcio, and can double as a 2nd striker. Snod has had a great season, offers something different and should be back in contention at West Ham under Pellegrini. You're probably right that we'll take, and start, Forrest.. but i can't see anything other than him once again not doing very much.

Cairney.. a 'premier league player' now, so i agree he'll probably be an auto include, but again we've never seen the best of him for Scotland. Armstrong and McGregor are the obvious 2, which leaves Cairney on the bench already. Bannan's been excellent at club level for a couple of seasons now, and has earnt another opportunity imo.

So yeah, I agree with you that Cairney and Forrest will probably be called up.. but I wouldn't pick them. You?

 

I don't think Forrest is anywhere near as bad as folk make him out to be.

I'd have him any day ahead of Bannan.

Wouldn't have Burke in the team either, still not convinced. Needs to be playing regularly and couldn't get near an utter pish WBA side.

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3 hours ago, Toepoke said:

It seems to be a 28 man squad these days so I'd expect the likes of Phillips, McArthur and Hanley to be in there too.

28 definitely opens the door for more, like Douglas, Hanley, Cairney, maybe even Ross McCormack, who's about the only Scottish striker who's been scoring goals this past season, albeit in Australia.

Phillips is an odd one. He's done ok in a few games as lone forward, holding the ball up and making life difficult for defenders, but the problem is I've never really felt like he was in danger of scoring. Sure, he got one after a lucky bounce of someone's arse, but he's still not a striker, and us not having a shot had a decent amount to do with him being up top imo. He looks ok with a terrible team behind him. But we surely can't go into qualifying with him as a serious option at center forward.

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2 hours ago, andyD said:

Cairney.. a 'premier league player' now, so i agree he'll probably be an auto include, but again we've never seen the best of him for Scotland. 

He's only had 2 caps!

Interesting call on Ross McCormack. I'd forgotten all about him, but given the paucity of options up front he might worth a shout if he's playing and scoring regularly.

 

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Whatever happened to Jordan Rhodes ? Canna believe the best we have outside Griffiths up front is McBurnie. He is in the Kevin Kyle league of strikers. 

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9 hours ago, andyD said:

Since there will be barely a month of football before the belgium game, I'm curious who people think should make the squad for the belgium friendly on sept 7th. For me there's actaully quite a few from the recent squad that makes it thru..

Gordon (Celtic), McGregor (Rangers), McLaughlin (Hearts)

Paterson (Cardiff), O'Donnell (Kilmarknock), Robertson (Liverpool), Tierney (Celtic), Mulgrew (Blackburn), McKenna (Aberdeen), Hendry (Celtic), Lindsay (Barnsley

McTominay (Man Utd), McDonald (Fulham), Shinnie (Aberdeen), Armstrong (Celtic), McGregor (Celtic), Bannan (Sheff Wed), Fraser (Bournemouth), Russell (Kansas City), Burke (West Brom), Snodgrass (West Ham)

Griffiths (Celtic), McBurnie (Swansea)

So that's 10 from the recent squad. There's some flexability in there, with Robertson potentially at left mid if we're 4 at the back. Shinnie can be cover for left back if we do that. Russell can play anywhere across the front. I've put Bannan in as he's been in really good club form and was never as bad as McGinn, McLean and McGeough were in the last two games. There's an argument for Fleck in place of him, he does off decent set piece delivery and i've always thought Griffiths on corners was a waste, but Bannan is better from open play.

You normally post a lot of sense Andy but I think you need to lay off the tequila. 

No idea how you've managed to convince yourself Lindsey will be involved. I can't see Bannan making the squad either and there is even less chance that Fleck will. 

Forrest, McArthur, Cairney and Ritchie are all likely to be included. Phillips will almost certainly be included too.  Douglas will be considered too. We will need another forward to someone like Cummings, Martin or Naismith might sneak in. 

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10 hours ago, BraveheartGordon said:

My squad in the other thread will be way closer 😎 also it’s a double header including the nations league match not just Belgium.

Wasn't going to an accurate squad, as that's dull and wildly predictable.. All the name Pasta Mick mentioned will be there.
I was interested what you folk would like to see, not what you think McLeish will actually do.

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14 hours ago, Doric said:

Whatever happened to Jordan Rhodes ? Canna believe the best we have outside Griffiths up front is McBurnie. He is in the Kevin Kyle league of strikers. 

Moved to sheffield wednesday.. manager barely played him for no apparent reason. Then under the new manager a couple of the other strikers hit the form of their lives and kept him out for the last few months of the season. Fingers crossed he either gets a move or forces his way into a starting spot for next season.

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I think the next squad (which will also be the one for the Nations League) will resemble very little from the one that went to Peru and Mexico.

Keepers I would imagine it will be McGregor, Archer plus one from Gordon and Bain depending on who starts as Celtic No1 keeper next season.

Most likely see Berra and Hanley brought back into the defense, but with Mulgrew and McKenna most likely keeping their spots in the team (certainly for the qualifier match).... Stephen O'Donnell might get a recall based on his ok showings over the last two games, but thats about it from the defenders.

Midfield might see McGeouch keeping his place, but you would expect Snodgrass, Cairney, Ricthie, Fraser, Armstrong, McGregor, McDonald, McArthur, Forest etc etc etc all to be recalled, so its going to be tough to break into there.

Upfront just can not see past him using Phillips, Griffiths and McBurnie, but would like to see Johnny Russel maybe given a chance.

Given his form in Toulan, would not be shocked to see Oli Burke getting a surprise recall, but think its a little unlikely.

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For me:

Keepers: Gordon, McGregor, Marshall/Bain

Defence: Tierney, Robertson, Mulgrew, Berra, McKenna, Hendry, Paterson, Douglas.

Midfield: Armstrong, C McGregor, Forrest, Fraser, McGinn, Cairney, McArthur, Phillips, McTominay.

Strikers: Griffiths, C Martin, Burke.

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On 6/4/2018 at 7:52 PM, Doric said:

Whatever happened to Jordan Rhodes ? Canna believe the best we have outside Griffiths up front is McBurnie. He is in the Kevin Kyle league of strikers. 

Would've thought that he could do a job, but for what ever reason he's not been a regular at Sheffield Wednesday - even latterly struggling to get on the bench. Has been linked with moves to Rangers and Norwich though, the former would probably be a very good move for him.

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I'd go with something like this:

  • Goalkeepers: Bain; Gordon; McGregor, A
  • Defenders: Berra; Hanley; Hendry; McKenna; Douglas; Paterson; Robertson; Tierney
  • Midfielders: Fletcher, D; McArthur; McGregor, C; McTominay; Morrison; Forrest; Fraser; Phillips; Snodgrass
  • Strikers: Cummings; Griffiths; McBurnie

Have to say that the striking options are pretty limited at the moment. If players like Steven Fletcher, Jordan Rhodes, Ross McCormack, Chris Martin or even Steven Naismith could get regular action somewhere and do well, I think they'd be players to look at.

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On 6/4/2018 at 2:30 PM, andyD said:

My problem with both is that they just don't seem to be the same players when they're wearing a dark blue shirt.

Fraser looks better at this level than Forrest does, no question. Burke has made a strong case for stepping up at Toulon, while Russell has earnt it against Mexcio, and can double as a 2nd striker. Snod has had a great season, offers something different and should be back in contention at West Ham under Pellegrini. You're probably right that we'll take, and start, Forrest.. but i can't see anything other than him once again not doing very much.

Cairney.. a 'premier league player' now, so i agree he'll probably be an auto include, but again we've never seen the best of him for Scotland. Armstrong and McGregor are the obvious 2, which leaves Cairney on the bench already. Bannan's been excellent at club level for a couple of seasons now, and has earnt another opportunity imo.

So yeah, I agree with you that Cairney and Forrest will probably be called up.. but I wouldn't pick them. You?

So you discount Cairney on the basis of him not impressing in his *two* international appearances to date, McGinn on the basis of not doing well in the tour but include Barry Bannan who has been generally pish in all bar a handful of games he's played.  It's a good job you aren't picking the team.

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On 6/4/2018 at 2:39 PM, Squirrelhumper said:

Wouldn't have Burke in the team either, still not convinced. Needs to be playing regularly and couldn't get near an utter pish WBA side.

If Burke can force his way into the WBA team and they get off to a good start in the Championship then we should take a look at him, until then he's probably better in the U21s.

I think for him though the bigger problem is how well WBA do next season.   Giving the manager's job to Darren Moore might actually be a good long term move but I wonder if he'll get a chance if they don't get off to a good start, WBA have been a bit "firey" when it comes to managers in recent years.

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4 hours ago, er yir macaroon said:

I can see Hornby being fast tracked to the full squad and Morgan will remain in it.

I think it will be a long times before we see him in a squad yet, but if he can break into the Everton first team squad, you never know.

He is only 18 (yet the photo from the Toulan where he is celebrating with Billy Gilmour, you would think he was in his mid 20's) so still plenty of time.

Edited by wanderer
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On 6/10/2018 at 11:15 AM, aaid said:

So you discount Cairney on the basis of him not impressing in his *two* international appearances to date, McGinn on the basis of not doing well in the tour but include Barry Bannan who has been generally pish in all bar a handful of games he's played.  It's a good job you aren't picking the team.

Discount is a bit heavy, if we're naming a 28 man squad I'd have him in it. Cairney was really poor against Costa Rica.. He was the main attacking outlet in central midfield and was utterly absent. I'm writing him off, that would be silly given that he's been a consistent performer at club level for a few years, but he certainly didn't take his opportunity. We'll see how he gets on in the Premier League next year, hopefully he excels and pushes into our starting lineup. Right now he's on the bench imo.

As for McGinn I had hopes for, but he's now 9 caps deep and really isn't showing the ability to make a difference at this level. Watching the Peru and Mexico games, he seemed well out of his depth, constantly giving the ball away and making bad decision after bad decision. He was a bit of an auto-include in the squad under Strachan, but having now had quite a few chances he just doesn't look good enough. Good for the SPrem, but not for international. He'll be 24 in a few months, so I'd leave him out and let him use it as motivation.

Bannan's only played in 2 of our last 11 games. Centrally in the win in Slovakia, where he looked good and out of position on the left in Slovenia, where he looked average. His club form since returning from injury has been excellent, and if we want a central player who can come off the bench and make something happen, then I think he's as good an option as we have, outside McGregor who is probably a starter anyway. I'd ask how many other creative attacking mids do we have?

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