Celtic star kept me out of Scotland team so much I stopped taking call-ups says defender

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Celtic players have been mainstays in the Scotland squad in recent years.

Callum McGregor retired from international duty last year after 63 caps for the Tartan Army, in order to devote more time to playing for Brendan Rodgers’ side.

James Forrest has been called up to two European Championships by Steve Clarke, and Scott Brown was made international captain by Gordon Strachan.

Despite injury troubles, Kieran Tierney received his 50th cap this year, having also appeared at two European Championships.

He and Andy Robertson have spearheaded the side’s defence under Clarke, despite both being left-backs at club level – and for another left-back, their presence was the reason he stopped attending Scotland camps.

Kieran Tierney kept me out of the Scotland team but I can’t complain says defender

Robertson and Tierney are part of a standout generation of full-backs for their country, creating intense international competition in the position.

READ MORE: Ange Postecoglou Celtic target scores to knock ex-Hoops boss out of Carabao Cup

Before the likes of Josh Doig and Greg Taylor were in the picture, there was Barry Douglas, who won the Championship twice in three years between 2018 and 2020.

And speaking on Open Goal, Douglas revealed that he tried to get out of Scotland squads due to feeling that he couldn’t displace the pair.

He said: “I didn’t go in when I got the call-up, because I felt I should have gotten a call-up before then – but then you look at who was playing in front of me, and you can’t really complain.

“It was Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney. I don’t really have any regrets on my career to date, but if I could change anything, I would probably have went to more squads.

“Because I got called up to more squads, but when I was at Leeds, I would always try and get out of it and have some issues, because I was just going to make up the numbers, basically.”

Douglas only ever made one appearance for his country, in a friendly against Hungary in 2018.

Will Kieran Tierney continue to miss out on Scotland action?

Kieran Tierney missed out on the last two Scotland matches due to ongoing fitness issues since his return to Celtic Park.

The 28-year-old has been unable to complete 90 minutes this season, making an adjustment from being a bit-part player in his final season at Arsenal.

Tierney was named on the bench for Sunday’s win against Kilmarnock, with Marcelo Saracchi earning praise for his performance in his first Celtic start.

Could a lack of fitness and game time take Tierney out of Clarke’s side for Scotland’s remaining four qualifiers? Some Celtic fans will be hoping that is the case.