Scotland boss Steve Clarke has given a typically non-committed answer on whether Celtic defender Anthony Ralston will feature against Denmark tomorrow.
Ralston has finally at long last been drafted into the Scotland squad for the final World Cup qualifying game against Denmark tomorrow night. This is due to the fact that Nathan Patterson, who doesn’t get a game at Rangers, being suspended after picking up a yellow card in Moldova on Friday night.
That leaves Ralston in a straight shootout with Stephen O’Donnell for a starting spot tomorrow. And below, Clarke was asked at his pre-Denmark presser whether the Celtic man will start the game. Unsurprisingly, his answer was typically disappointing:
To sum up, Clarke refuses to effectively answer the question. Instead of stating whether Ralston is in contention to start tomorrow, he simply states that everyone in his squad is in contention. It’s a generic answer with absolutely no substance to it.
The Daily Record reported last night that Ralston is likely to be behind O’Donnell in the pecking order tomorrow.
That’s despite the fact the former has been blowing away the competition at Celtic whilst the latter has struggled to standout at Motherwell.
Makes total sense for Steve Clarke to start Anthony Ralston for Scotland
The truth is that Ralston deserves his Scotland opportunity and should be put in the starting line-up whether Clarke rates him ahead of O’Donnell or not.
Even if Clarke wants to go with the Motherwell man, it would be a hugely risky game he’s playing. If O’Donnell picks up a yellow card, he’ll be suspended for the World Cup qualifying semi-final playoff match. Granted, Patterson will be back for that one, but Clarke won’t like the idea of losing one of his trusted stalwarts.
So considering tomorrow’s game against the Danes means relatively little, it’s difficult to see why Ralston wouldn’t be thrown into the mix. Surely this is the kind of contest in which players deserve opportunities.
If Clarke plays O’Donnell and he picks up a suspension for the semi-final, it’ll be an unnecessary move. And given the quality of the Danes, particularly on the counter-attack, O’Donnell will have a lot on his plate if he’s to start.
Ralston, meanwhile, has been shining both domestically and in Europe for Celtic. Coming up against Denmark in a World Cup qualifier certainly won’t faze him. He’s already come up against better quality in the Europa League.
So it really is down to Clarke to make the obvious decision here. Fingers crossed we aren’t left disappointed.
In other news, Retired Swiss international brilliantly names Celtic fans the “best in the world”
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