Nations League 2024: Where are the Problems

[Scots_Wha_Hae]

With the current Nations League now complete I think I am right in saying the next fixtures will be in around June 2024. Given the length of time between now and then, it is very difficult to say who will emerge and force their way into the team. What is possibly easier is to identify those players for whom the next Nations League, culminating in September 2025, will likely be a 'tournament' too far.

The good news is the majority of the spine of our team will be in their prime then or for many, yet to reach the peak of their career.

The most obvious issue is the keeper. Gordon will be 41 in June 2024 and 42 going on 43 by the conclusion of the tournament. With the best will in the world, he is very unlikely to still be turning out for Scotland at that point. Added to that, McLaughlin will be 37 when the tournament kicks off and Zander Clark 33. Kelly and McCrorie will have good age profiles at 28 and 26 respectively when the tournament starts, but both have yet to be capped and are currently struggling to impact club football. Without the emergence of a half-decent replacement we are in a difficult position here.

In the fullback positions we have and will continue to have an embarrassment of riches, form and injury status permitted. Robertson would be the elder statesman of the fullbacks, but at 31 when the tournament kicks off he should still be good to see us through. O'Donnell will be getting along at 33 by the time the tournament starts, but he has largely been transitioned out the squad for Patterson, Hickey and Ralston by this point anyway. No real concerns here, in fact this is likely to continue to be an area of real strength for us going forward.

In central defence a couple of squad stalwarts in Cooper and Gallagher will likely have moved on from the squad. With 9 and 14 caps at present, it is clear neither are mainstays of the side. Hanley, 33 at the start of the tournament is likely to be phased out and that is likely to be our only real concern. With a variety of younger players already in the team or around the squad including McKenna, Souttar, Porteous and Hendry there is nothing to overly concern us here.

In midfield we will probably lose McLean, Jack and Armstrong around this tournament with all 33 when it starts. Their inclusion will depend on their individual fitness levels and their desire to win more caps. Of the three Armstrong is the biggest miss, but the likes of Turnbull may be able to fill a similar position by then or else a change in formation will allow the likes of Gilmour or Ferguson into the team. Calum McGregor will be 32 when the tournament starts and that may be a concern given how vital he is to how we play on top of the fact that his workload is enormous both in terms of number of games played and his workrate during those games. He would be a big miss if he dropped out of the squad. I'm not sure we have another player who could fulfil that role in the squad at present.

In the forwards Ryan Fraser will be 31 when the tournament kicks off which is fine. He perhaps strikes me as a player that will retire early but that is possibly unfair. We will possibly be a little weaker in the forward positions if he does, with no obvious replacements in the squad at present. Nevertheless, Ross Stewart or Jacob Brown could possibly play a slightly different role as his replacement in the squad.

So, altogether not too much to worry about beyond the known issue of goalkeeper. I think we are in great shape for the next 3 or 4 years which gives any young players breaking through a bit of space to make their way in the squad before any undue pressure is heaped on them. It also makes selection for the squad highly competitive, which hopefully incentivises those on the fringes to keep working on breaking through, and the incumbents on continuing to perform.

[Diamond Scot]

One advantage of being a succesful team is that its much easier to either attract eligable players or retain Scottish born players who are eligable for other nations. Ireland benefited from this for years and Wales are currently enjoying the benefits.

Im thinking the likes of Elliot Anderson for example. Its a much easier sell to say, stick with us, we are playing the top teams in League A and have a real good chance of making several major tournaments in your career than it would have been 5 years ago when we were a total shambles.

Im sure a GK will be found one way or another. Thats the only position id have any fears over.

[er yir macaroon]

Apart from goalkeeper, everything looks fine. The current strikers will still be around and hopefully better ones will emerge (perhaps Rory Wilson). 

Armstrong will still be fine at 33 and McGregor at 32, but they’ll have Lowry and Gilmour to compete with and possibly Cole McKinnon, Connor Smith and Chris Mochrie, to name a few. 

[King Of Paisley]

22 minutes ago, er yir macaroon said:

Apart from goalkeeper, everything looks fine. The current strikers will still be around and hopefully better ones will emerge (perhaps Rory Wilson). 

Armstrong will still be fine at 33 and McGregor at 32, but they’ll have Lowry and Gilmour to compete with and possibly Cole McKinnon, Connor Smith and Chris Mochrie, to name a few. 

Alex Lowry as well.

[fringo]

I don't think a good player's career it at end end when they turn 30.

[er yir macaroon]

21 minutes ago, King Of Paisley said:

Alex Lowry as well.

Yeah, I mentioned him. Nailed on starter by then, and a star player. 

[Tartan blood]

1 hour ago, er yir macaroon said:

Yeah, I mentioned him. Nailed on starter by then, and a star player. 

Lowry will be a "nailed on starter" and "star player" for Scotland by the 2024 Euros? Do you seriously have that much confidence in him that you are certain he'll be playing ahead of 2 of McGinn, Christie, Armstrong or Fraser? Not to mention finding a way to get ahead of the likes of Turnbull in the pecking order.

I mean, I absolutely hope you are right. But that is a bold prediction.

[er yir macaroon]

10 minutes ago, Tartan blood said:

Lowry will be a "nailed on starter" and "star player" for Scotland by the 2024 Euros? Do you seriously have that much confidence in him that you are certain he'll be playing ahead of 2 of McGinn, Christie, Armstrong or Fraser? Not to mention finding a way to get ahead of the likes of Turnbull in the pecking order.

I mean, I absolutely hope you are right. But that is a bold prediction.

100%

[Hendricks]

1 hour ago, er yir macaroon said:

100%

 

Was at the Hearts v Rangers last geek of the league season. Was a bit of a glorified kick about given nothing to play for, Europa Final and the Scottish Cup Final the following week but watched Lowry carefully. Without getting carried away he looked like one of the best young Scottish Rangers players I have seen in decades, reminded me a little of a young Durrant. Let's hope their careers don't follow similar injury paths as surely he will earn a lot more than the 20 caps!

[ParisInAKilt]

6 hours ago, Diamond Scot said:

One advantage of being a succesful team is that its much easier to either attract eligable players or retain Scottish born players who are eligable for other nations. Ireland benefited from this for years and Wales are currently enjoying the benefits.

Im thinking the likes of Elliot Anderson for example. Its a much easier sell to say, stick with us, we are playing the top teams in League A and have a real good chance of making several major tournaments in your career than it would have been 5 years ago when we were a total shambles.

Im sure a GK will be found one way or another. Thats the only position id have any fears over.

I know that’s the case but to see it actually written is quite sad. 

[Texas Pete]

Robby McCrorie could (and hopefully should) be Rangers number 1 by then depending on whether Rangers buy a new keeper or not. If not hopefully he will have moved and established himself as first pick elsewhere. 

If he doesn’t work out then I’m sure someone else will come along to fill Gordon’s gloves.

A couple of years ago (was it even that long ago?) we were all panicking about where our next right back was coming from. Central defence and striker were also a concern and while we don’t have world beaters in those positions we now have some decent options so hopefully the same will happen with our goalkeeper concerns.

 

[Diamond Scot]

Sad reality of human nature. It also applies to regular Scottish players in terms of call offs etc. We have already seen call offs dramatically reduce since we are progressing and playing in meaningful games.

If a player is carrying a knock (which they do pretty much all the time), its alot easier to convince yourself to travel and play in a match to get into League A rather than a match that means nothing and most likely you will get humped in like it was for us only a few years back.

[Templeton_Peck]

16 hours ago, ParisInAKilt said:

I know that’s the case but to see it actually written is quite sad. 

Livramento, Barnes and Gunn might well be having a word with their agents. 

As shown in recent games our squad depth is already impressive with young players also progressing well albeit most are full backs. 

[ProudScot]

4 minutes ago, Templeton_Peck said:

Livramento, Barnes and Gunn might well be having a word with their agents. 

As shown in recent games our squad depth is already impressive with young players also progressing well albeit most are full backs. 

Don’t know if Livramento would get a look in with our talent now at right back!

menral to say that given not so long ago it was only SOD…

[Squirrelhumper]

9 minutes ago, Templeton_Peck said:

Livramento, Barnes and Gunn might well be having a word with their agents. 

As shown in recent games our squad depth is already impressive with young players also progressing well albeit most are full backs. 

Nah, they can go fuck themselves. Especially Gunn.

[Bobby Russell's Lovechild]

3 hours ago, Squirrelhumper said:

Nah, they can go fuck themselves. Especially Gunn.

👍

[Toepoke]

On 9/28/2022 at 2:36 PM, Scots_Wha_Hae said:

With the current Nations League now complete I think I am right in saying the next fixtures will be in around June 2024.

Surely that's when the Euros will be getting played? 🤔

[Judith]

Giben the way he is still playing, I wouldnt be calling the end of Craig Gordons Scotland career anytime soon.....

[Orraloon]

14 hours ago, Toepoke said:

Surely that's when the Euros will be getting played? 🤔

Maybe that result against Ukraine was more important than we thought, and we've actually got a bye straight through to the finals? 😂

I'm fairly sure our EURO qualifiers start next March.

[Caledonian Craig]

Any competitive matches just now and Craig Gordon should start. If we do arrange a friendly in November then we should definitely start with McCrorie or Kelly or another option in goal to see what they can do at full international level. Also Clarke should look to include a few from the U-21 squad who he feels are close to the main squad to see how close they really are to full level.

[Diamond Scot]

Clarke should be saying to McCrorie that he should be next Scotland GK but that he wont be anywhere near the squad until he plays regular 1st team football.

You simply cant be 3rd choice GK for your club and expect a decent career. If Rangers had any faith in him then they wouldnt have resigned McGreggor and the current Rangers number 1 debate would have been between McCrorie and McLaughlin.

 

[syecosse]

November friendly would be ideal for game time for the likes of Mccrorie, Kelly,Stewart, Doig and Porteus. Plus maybe the chance to call up or look at the likes of Anderson, Lowry, Fiorini, Hyam, Mcintyre or Lindsay. 

[Caledonian Craig]

At present there are two areas that we are noticeably thin on the ground and two areas where we have plenty of options and in some an embarrassment of riches. 

First the good - the defence. In wide areas we have an abundance of top quality options in the form of Robertson, Tierney, Patterson and Hickey with real decent back-up options in Anthony Ralston and Greg Taylor. In the centre of defence we have got stronger in the last year or two with Hendry, McKenna, Hanley, Souttar and Cooper all proving they can do a solid job for us with Porteous also showing he is worth another look too.

The midfield also has plenty of options who have shown they can do a good job for us. We have McGinn who is talismanic, McGregor, McTominay (who hopefully will now only be used in midfield), Armstrong, Gilmour and Jack as the main options. I put Fraser and Christie into the attacking midfielder category and both have their worth too.

Now to our weaker areas - goalkeeper. We are really up shit creek if Craig Gordon gets injured and when he retires. We need to find a credible back-up for him ASAP but we are in an awkward position. Drop Gordon to blood a youngster is weakening the side in competitive matches which we nearly always have now. Any friendlies and alternative goalkeepers MUST be looked at for the future. Our options do not look stellar at the moment so hopefully we can improve in that area.

Up front we only really have Dykes and Adams who have proven they know where the net is. But (like with our goalkeeper) should we lose both of them we are really thin on the ground but to be fair we do have goal threats now in other areas. I'd really like us to have another couple of strikers as back up though who I would feel comfortable starting should Dykes or Adams be unavailable. At present that just is not the case.

[Clyde1998]

1 hour ago, Caledonian Craig said:

At present there are two areas that we are noticeably thin on the ground and two areas where we have plenty of options and in some an embarrassment of riches. 

First the good - the defence. In wide areas we have an abundance of top quality options in the form of Robertson, Tierney, Patterson and Hickey with real decent back-up options in Anthony Ralston and Greg Taylor. In the centre of defence we have got stronger in the last year or two with Hendry, McKenna, Hanley, Souttar and Cooper all proving they can do a solid job for us with Porteous also showing he is worth another look too.

The midfield also has plenty of options who have shown they can do a good job for us. We have McGinn who is talismanic, McGregor, McTominay (who hopefully will now only be used in midfield), Armstrong, Gilmour and Jack as the main options. I put Fraser and Christie into the attacking midfielder category and both have their worth too.

Now to our weaker areas - goalkeeper. We are really up shit creek if Craig Gordon gets injured and when he retires. We need to find a credible back-up for him ASAP but we are in an awkward position. Drop Gordon to blood a youngster is weakening the side in competitive matches which we nearly always have now. Any friendlies and alternative goalkeepers MUST be looked at for the future. Our options do not look stellar at the moment so hopefully we can improve in that area.

Up front we only really have Dykes and Adams who have proven they know where the net is. But (like with our goalkeeper) should we lose both of them we are really thin on the ground but to be fair we do have goal threats now in other areas. I'd really like us to have another couple of strikers as back up though who I would feel comfortable starting should Dykes or Adams be unavailable. At present that just is not the case.

I agree with the points on the defence and midfield, with the only slight concern is a number of players are now at their peak and will likely start to decline within the next few years - Hanley and Cooper in defence and McGregor, Armstrong, Jack, McLean and Fleck in midfield are now 29 or older. Hopefully the younger players coming through will be able to adequately replace them - players like Porteous, Souttar, King, Gilmour, Turnbull and Ferguson.

In goal, we really do need to give Kelly and/or McCrorie game time. Hopefully any friendlies in November will allow for this, or even qualifiers against lower ranked nations. It's the goalkeeping position I'm most concerned about in the next few years.

Similarly, we probably need to give a bit of time for Brown and Stewart to see what they can provide us. Both were injured for this international break, but neither have been given a serious runout when they've been in the squad - again upcoming friendlies or qualifiers against lower ranked nations would be the best opportunity to do this. Possibly by the time we get to the 2024 Nations League we'll have had players like Conway or Ure in the squad to give us more options; if Conway continues his form in the Championship come November or whenever our next international will be, I'd be surprised if he's not in the squad then.

This all said, I don't think two years ago we would've thought we'd be as strong as we are now - players may improve more than any of us are anticipating or new players come through no-one had really thought of.

[ceudmilefailte]

On 9/30/2022 at 4:07 PM, syecosse said:

November friendly would be ideal for game time for the likes of Mccrorie, Kelly,Stewart, Doig and Porteus. Plus maybe the chance to call up or look at the likes of Anderson, Lowry, Fiorini, Hyam, Mcintyre or Lindsay. 

McBurnie?