Tartan Army starts long march around Europe
Wednesday, 03 Sep 2008 13:31
The Tartan Army are warming up ahead of trips to the far flung corners of Europe this week
Scotland kick-off their World Cup qualifying campaign this weekend at the City Stadium in Skopje, Macedonia.
And this match will be the first part of the most important double-header in the 2010 qualifying campaign, writes
inthenews.co.uk's Chris Malone.
Traditionally these away trips to supposedly lesser opposition have proved to be the Achilles heel for Scotland, so a good start to the group nine campaign is a must.
The game against Macedonia should be considered a must win, while next Wednesday's trip to Iceland could turn out to be one of Scotland's most important fixtures.
The group draw probably wasn't what George Burley would have wanted, with the Netherlands looking favourites to win the group and Scotland, Norway and Iceland likely to fight it out for second place.
Macedonia may have a part to play in proceedings and a couple of shock results could upset the proverbial apple cart with any of their four competitors - recently proving they are no pushovers by hammering Luxemburg 4-1.
The relatively small 18,104 City Stadium is likely to be packed to bursting point for the opening game of the qualifiers, while the Tartan Army are expected to travel in great numbers as usual.
The game against the more reputable Icelanders will prove a tough task after the journey from Eastern Europe, especially as the even smaller 7,176 Laugardalsvollur Stadium could prove to be an intimidating cauldron for the visitors.
However, Burley's men are likely to be more concerned with an Iceland squad that contains influential Barcelona hitman Eidur Gudjohnsen, among other proven players in club football.
The Icelanders were held to a rather disappointing draw by lowly Azerbaijan at home in their previous match and will be looking to step up their game ahead of the visit of the Scots.
Burley's minimum requirement should be four points from these two games, although if Scotland hope to progress they will realistically need to aim for six out of six.
Over the course of qualifying, they must look to take six points from Macedonia and at least four apiece from Iceland and Norway, which would virtually seal a place in the top two regardless of results against the Dutch.
The problem then is that the Scots will need to come through a two-legged playoff to qualify for their first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup in France, assuming the Netherlands top the group.
In terms of team selection for the upcoming games, Burley has plenty of food for thought following another eventful Old Firm game.
Kenny Miller will have done his chances no harm whatsoever with a brace against the former club Celtic, while the Scottish champions' new signing Shaun Maloney has looked lively in the two games since his return.
"Kenny's been a big part of our success in recent seasons so I'm very pleased he's bang on form," Burley told the BBC.
"It must give him confidence, but I have no doubts about Kenny's ability to be a big player on key occasions."
And Miller will need to take that confidence, and goalscoring knack, into the double header this week, with Scotland having struggled against supposedly weaker opposition in the past.
Burley has to pick from a plethora of strike partners for Miller but may have to do without Garry O'Connor as he searches for his first win in charge since taking over the reigns from Alex McLeish, who left to become Birmingham City manager.
Maloney and Rangers' Kris Boyd could both play a part up front, as could Birmingham's James McFadden - who was inspirational in the Euro 2008 qualifiers.
David Clarkson has been included in the squad but is unlikely to feature ahead of the more experienced strikers in such an important match.
Another interesting selection issue is the midfield, with captain Barry Ferguson ruled out through injury.
Celtic's Paul Hartley, Barry Robson and Scott Brown are likely to feature at some stage, while Darren Fletcher is an almost certain start following his early season heroics for Manchester United.
Whether or not Rangers' Kevin Thompson, Derby's Kris Commons or West Brom's James Morrison will play a part remains open to debate, although Thompson looks to be finally finding form with last season's Uefa Cup runners-up.
Following on from the 0-0 draw with Northern Ireland, Celtic captain Stephen McManus is likely to retain the armband in the absence of Ferguson.
Whether Gary Caldwell will partner his club team-mate will depend on Burley's perception of stalwart David Weir and newcomer Darren Barr's recent performances.
Burley may opt for the experienced head of Weir, despite encouraging signs from Barr, who impressed against the Northern Irish on his Scotland debut.
Graham Alexander is likely to continue at right back, while Gary Naysmith has been trying to talk his way into the left-back slot.
Allan McGregor's form could see Craig Gordon sweating over his number one jersey and his penalty save in the recent friendly will only boost his chances.
That being said, Burley is likely to stick with Gordon, who was also outstanding during the Euro 2008 qualifiers, which again ended in gallant failure.
However, all such performances – and what-ifs from players and fans alike - must now be forgotten. Despite a good campaign last time around under previous managers McLeish and Walter Smith, the slate is now wiped clean and Burley's charges need to earn their stripes in two potentially tricky away ties.
The good news for the Tartan Army is that those tricky games will be out of the way first.
What will worry some is the final day home clash with the Netherlands on 09/09/09. But that's a long way away, and hopefully they will have qualified before then – but don't let Mr Burley hear you say that.
Chris Malone