theabsentee
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Posts posted by theabsentee
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7 minutes ago, Burj_Alba said:
Assist for Ralston today, could come into the equation if Hickey is not fit for June and Patterson spends his career on the Everton bench. Four Scottish players in Celtic line up today, most this season I think.
I much prefer Archie Gray😉
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U21s
in TA specific
3 hours ago, syecosse said:Scotland U19s won 4-0 v Latvia, not bad as a number of clubs did not let players attend due to it not being an international break. Alfie Bavidge scored a hatrick and Motinikov.
Think that's 2 hat tricks this month for him & still only 17, let's hope he is good enough to get game time in the SPL next season
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1 hour ago, adamntg said:
How strong is his Scottishness? Is he likely to switch if England come knocking?
No idea , all I know he has played at different age levels for both but has currently chose to play for us.
The other English born Man Utd 18 year old centre back Jack Kingdon plays for us due to his dad apparently .
What I have just read on the Man Utd forum is that currently it's Jack Fletcher of Darren's twin sons who is much higher rated, he is supposed to be exceptional but sadly & eager predictability he is the one who is currently playing for England.
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2 hours ago, broraboy said:
Yes
But also a Stuart Armstrong assist 👌🏴
Mom Armstrong, he has had a couple of poor games lately but was class tonight apparently, overall he is having a very good season..
Still got a big part to play for Scotland mostly from the bench.
Adams injured again but expected back next week.
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On 2/15/2024 at 10:13 PM, syecosse said:
Scots u19 CB Louis jackson has been training with Man. Utds first team.
One to look out for hopefully🤞
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33 minutes ago, BryanBlessed said:
When there was speculation about Ferguson moving to the EPL, it was generally bottom-half teams that were interested. McTominay has lost his place in a Man Utd team hitting form and probably aiming for the top four. I can understand Man Utd dropping him as, finishing aside, he's probably not quite good enough for them and doesn't have enough to the rest of his game. However, I doubt Lewis Ferguson would get anywhere near the Man Utd starting XI either. McTominay has that credit in the bank from the last campaign which other players, who should probably be dropped, don't.
I agree on Gilmour and Christie but I'd also like to see Souttar getting minutes in the friendlies as I think he could potentially take the place of Hendry or Porteous.
Of course, Shankland should be starting these upcoming games
Totally agree with everything you've written here 👌
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On 2/14/2024 at 3:19 AM, mccaughey85 said:
Shanklands second is a beautiful finish.
Yeh it was, he also came across as a good character in the post match interview . Unless there's a dramatic loss of form or injury surely he goes to Germany.
Adams ( 30 games, 10 goals, 4 assists)
Dykes ( 30, 5, 0)
Conway( 29, 8, 0)
McBurnie(15, 4, 2)
Nisbet ( 28, 5, 0)
Hardie (30, 12, 4)
Shankland ( 33, 24, 4)
Brown & Christie aren't centre forwards so I haven't listed them & really hope Clarke doesn't consider them to be either!
I'm not a stats man generally as players play at different levels & I wasn't a a fan even a couple of months ago but it's impossible to ignore Shankland when you take into consideration the average seasons most of his competitors are having.
It's Adams & Shankland for me as if any established players squad place is under threat it should be Dykes though I know most of us love his attitude so let's hope he plays enough games & bags at least 2 or 3 goals before the end of the season to boost his confidence & make his selection justified.
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1 hour ago, The Black Bra said:
Ferguson should get a start in at least one of the friendlies, but that would probably mean dropping McTominay. On current form, there’s a strong argument that Ferguson deserves a start more. McTominay has lost his place at Man U, he’s now more of a super sub who comes off the bench and still chips in with goals regularly. He could be the same for us but would be a big decision to drop him following his contribution in the qualifiers.
Similar with McGregor, not sure if he warrants starting at the moment. Would like to see Gilmour and Christie in the friendlies. And Shankland. Fraser back in the squad, Tierney & Hickey back fit and I’ll be happy.
Tierney & Hickey both fit is crucial come the summer. Yeh the fringe guys you mention all deserve starts or a good amount of minutes in the friendlies, i would especially like to see Christie played in a deeper role.
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1 hour ago, JECK said:
Shankland supported by McTomminay and McGinn - there’s going to be chaos in Germany
Warming to that idea myself & I'd previously not fancied Shankland due to the level he plays at.
Depends on the game I reckon, against Germany I don't think so, better the work rate of Adams or Dykes, they can create space for Mctominay or McGinn on breaks forward though in games when we are on the front foot starting with Shankland could be the way to go.
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3 minutes ago, todd said:
No way he's on the bench that often if he's Brazilian though
Fred was & he spent plenty time on the United bench also sometimes due to Scott starting.
Our Scott's a bit of a enigma especially at club level, he isn't good enough to dictate a game, doesn't always track back but he is very good at driving forward, great athletic, gets stuck in and is lethal in and around the box.
One thing for sure is he will never be a defensive midfielder while there's a whole in his arse! Looks like the central defender experiment didn't work either.
He is 27 now so let's hope all those alleged expert coaches have finally realised him limitations & will let him flourish in a role that suits him as a box to box midfielder or support striker though I'm still sure there's still time for him to be tried as a number 9! Wonder if it will be us or a club to inevitable try that out.
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17 hours ago, todd said:
2 goals more than 'wonder kid' Hojlund in less time on the pitch, and from midfield. The Saltire next to his name is the only reason he's constantly on the bench
Nothing to do with it man, I love Scott as much as anybody but his isn't a complete enough midfielder to start regularly for them.
As a impact sub when the game is stretched he is a serious asset for them , if he is happy with that role then he probably stays at United for a good while yet.
Actually think him being a club supersub suits us just fine.
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On another note, I was quite proud watching a draw & being a top seed yesterday but that was slightly dampened when I saw Israel & Bosnia where also top seeds. I haven't the patience anymore to investigate why myself but wtf have those 2 done to warrant being top seeds?
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18 minutes ago, Caledonian Craig said:
Fixtures are out:-
Thursday 5th September 2024: SCOTLAND V Poland 7.45 pm
Sunday 8th September 2024: Portugal V SCOTLAND 7.45 pm
Saturday 12th October 2024: Croatia V SCOTLAND 6.00 pm
Tuesday 15th October 2024: SCOTLAND V Portugal 7.45 pm
Friday 15th November 2024: SCOTLAND V Croatia 7.45 pm
Monday 18th November 2024: Poland V SCOTLAND 7.45 pm
3 very nice potential away trips though guess we have to wait patiently for venues to be announced .
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3 minutes ago, romanticscot said:
Nice - Portugal, Croatia, Poland.
Yeh nice draw, definitely the best of the 4.
All beautiful countries to visit & depending on the dates usually relatively cheap flights
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4 hours ago, BryanBlessed said:
Can Christie play the role of defensive midfielder because that's what we really need next to Gilmour or McGregor.
For sure he can, he reads the game well, good passer , can tackle maybe not as well as Ryan Jack but certainly better than McGregor or Gilmour & he has bags of energy. His emergence in this role might unfortunately cost Ryan Jack or less likely McLean a squad place but like has been said it frees up a potential place for a extra offensive player.
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7 hours ago, Tartan blood said:
Christie starting in centre mid again. I'm sure Clarke has taken notice.
We are very lucky to have so many versatile players. Knowing Christie can slot in there means Clarke will be less tempted to play McTominay or McGinn further back.
Seeing Christie as a midfielder, rather than a forward, could free up some space for Fraser and/or Shankland in the final 23.
Totally agree & he is playing really well in the deeper role. Not sure if he got a knock but he was taken off today after 56 minutes & fans saying they don't play at the same tempo without him in the team .
Here's a fans opinion of him after the midweek game against West Ham. I know it's only a fan but if he keeps up this form up I would like Clarke to try him out probably next to McGregor as 2 sitting midfielders in Amsterdam. It could be a good dress rehearsal for the Germany game .
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14 hours ago, ProudScot said:
Actually we’re both
🤣 Yeh the reality
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1 hour ago, syecosse said:
Does not see to be many Scot deals going though, a couple of interesting ones being Adam Devine on loan to Motherwell from Rangers and Joe Bevan 19 striker signing for Burnley from Albuon rovers.
Huge step up for Bevan but just watched a interview with him, he is very level headed young man & he looks to have some pace & a cracking left peg.
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Christie MOM from Bournemouth fans tonight, I watched about half a hour of the first half & he was quality playing in a deeper role.
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8 hours ago, ProudScot said:
No danger McLean is an international centre back
Nobody says he is but I don't want us taking 6 centre backs when in all likelihood only 4 or 5 will get minutes & I'm including KT in the 5. If we are unlucky & have a couple of central defenders injured or suspended we would still have 3 starters & Hickey or McLean capable of doing a job for part of the game if necessary.
I'd be much happier we had a extra offensive player on the bench than a extra defender , preferable a wide player like Barnes or Fraser .
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5 hours ago, BryanBlessed said:
He's a good championship player which is literally what we can say about half our team. My worry is not Kenny McLean who is far from first choice even in midfield but the first-choice championship players we'll be playing in central defence and up front.
Yeh mine too.
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8 hours ago, JECK said:
Looked like such a different player when in the Celtic jersey compared to Motherwell where he was given so much freedom and seemed the complete opposite at Celtic. Lost so much game time the last few years. If played correctly reckon he could do very well for Cardiff.
Yeh hope he does well. Though I don't think he works hard enough or is athletic enough to play for Celtic or Scotland currently.
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3 hours ago, syecosse said:
David Turnbull looks like he is off to Cardiff for 2 million.
Looks like he is unlikely to fulfil his exciting early potential. Think Celtic paid 3 million for him so it's not as great sign that they are willing to sell him for less.
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9 hours ago, Tartan blood said:
I'm a big fan of Hanley, and so is Clarke. But he's been out for a long time and has yet to fully establish himself back in Norwich's starting 11. So it'll be pretty hard to justify him starting for Scotland if that continues.
Same goes for Cooper. Who might end up not even making the final 23.
My preference would be Tierney, McKenna and Porteous at the back. Porteous simply because he is the type of defender that occasionally makes superb last ditch tackles that can save you points. However, I'd be quite happy with Hendry as well.
Do we need more than 5 CBs? I guess 6 would be sensible if Clarke sees Tierney as a back up to Robertson. Though Hickey could easily be shifted to LWB as well.
Porteous , McKenna, Tierney would be my starting choices also. I like Hanley but think the centre of the 3 role can be played well by almost all our options & maybe due to injuries & age it might be time to move on from Hanley .
If Kenny McLean makes the squad his recent performances playing well in central defence should allow Clarke to chance only taking 5 central defenders.
Probably that'll be Hendry, Porteous, Tierney, McKenna & Hanley with Souttar sadly missing out.
Scottish players in action 21/22
in TA specific
Posted
🤣
McLean played in the back 4 partnered by Hanley today. Not saying he should be ever start there for Scotland but having versatile players like him is a real asset especially with only a 23 man squad