'He's probably thinking, why did I say that?'
Nations League play-off, first leg: Greece v ScotlandVenue: Karaiskakis Stadium, Piraeus Date: Thursday, 20 March Time: 19:45 GMTCoverage: Watch on BBC One Scotland & iPlayer; listen on BBC Radio Scotland & Sounds; live text coverage & in-play clips on the BBC Sport website & app
John McGinn believes Lennon Miller might regret saying he could soon become Scotland's best player but has backed the Motherwell 18-year-old to come through a nerve-wracking squad debut with flying colours - just like he did nine years ago.On hearing that he had been called up for the Nations League play-off double header against Greece, fellow midfielder Lennon had said: "I'm obviously not going to go in and be the best player there, but I believe I could maybe in a couple of months be the best player there."Scotland assistant coach John Carver said the comment showed Miller needed "a little bit of guidance", while McGinn, 30, suggested: "He's probably thinking - why did I say that? But I said plenty of stupid things when I was coming through at St Mirren."The Aston Villa captain recalled that his own first call-up came while he was 21 and playing in Scotland's second tier with Hibernian - a decision that earned criticism from a more seasoned international midfielder.
"I remember Charlie Adam did an interview on my first day from Stoke's training ground asking why there were Scottish Championship players getting called up, which wasn't too helpful at the time," McGinn said."I don't think he was aiming it at me individually or personally. Just the timing of it was a bit of a disaster as I was already a bit nervous and star struck. So, at my first lunch at Mar Hall, all the experienced boys were getting right on me, like, 'you shouldn't be in the squad'."My session 30 minutes later wasn't great. It was nerve wracking. Shaun Maloney made me feel that small, turning me inside out and I remember going back to my room and thinking to myself, 'I can't compete at this level, they were too good'."But, as the sessions go on, as you get more experience, you get more comfortable and you start to express yourself more."McGinn recalled that Adam was not the only one who thought a player from his club level should not be playing for Scotland."I will always be grateful to Gordon Strachan for giving me that opportunity and he flung me right in for my debut that week," he said."There was a lot of pressure on me and I felt it a little bit, but I remember that first game next to Broony [Scott Brown]. Little nuggets of wisdom during the game, support before the game, and you start to feel at home."Indeed, McGinn played the full 90 minutes of that 1-0 friendly victory over Denmark, was named man of the match and has gone on to earn 73 caps.Now he is looking forward to playing alongside a "confident" player he has watched develop in action alongside his brother, Paul McGinn, at Fir Park, as well as another 18-year-old squad debutant - Heart of Midlothian striker James Wilson."They are not here to make the numbers up," McGinn added. "They are here to take our places if they, eventually, are better than the ones who are here. He definitely has the ability to do so and so does James."
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Clarke is clearly an admirer of the former England age-group player, who qualifies to play for this country through his paternal grandfather, as this was the third game in a row he has fielded him. He came on in both of the Greece games back in March. Read more: But this was a first start for him. He showed why was given the nod despite failing to find the target during his time on the park. He headed a John McGinn chip over, forced a one-handed save from Elias Rafn Olafsson after meeting a Scott McTominay cutback with a first-time shot and had a goal, correctly, chalked off for offside. He received a warm round of applause when he was replaced by Adams. Rightly so. He showed he has much to offer despite the result. 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A vast improvement against Liechtenstein in Vaduz on Monday is now needed to get the fans back onside ahead of the World Cup qualifying opener against Denmark.
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Losing goalkeeper Angus Gunn early on and having to bring on the uncapped Cieran Slicker to replace him was far from ideal for manager Steve Clarke. Still, Andy Robertson and his team mates could have no complaints about the final scoreline. This was another dire display and a wretched result. Here are five talking points from a bitterly disappointing night for Scotland. Nightmare debut The last thing that Clarke, who had been at pains to point how few goalkeepers Scotland have playing at a decent level when he named his squad for this double header last month, was to see his first choice goalkeeper pick up an injury. But that is exactly what happened. In just the third minute too. Gunn was clattered by Andri Gudjohnsen as he tried to pluck a high ball out of the air and landed awkwardly. He failed to respond to medical attention and hobbled off with the help of a physio. It was a devastating setback for a man who has not had his problems to seek fitness wise this term. Read more: The 15-times capped 29-year-old had not featured in an international since the narrow Nations League loss to Portugal in Lisbon back in September and he was eager to make amends for lost time and stake a claim for a start in World Cup qualifying. It was not to be. Gunn's knock meant an unexpected debut for Slicker of Ipswich Town. The 22-year-old, who is eligible to represent Scotland because of his Glaswegian father, made just one appearance in the season which has just finished. He came on for the final nine minutes of an FA Cup win over Bristol Rovers in January. His lack of game time showed. He played the ball straight to Stefan Poroarson shortly after taking to the field. The Iceland midfielder nodded down to Gudjohnsen who did superbly curl a left foot shot into the top left corner. The son of former Barcelona Chelsea star Eidur is a chip off the old block. It was hard not to feel sympathy for the newcomer. But he settled the nerves he would inevitably have been feeling when he saved a long-range Jon Dagur Porsteinsson attempt. His distribution improved thereafter too. Not that it could have got any worse. Could Slicker have done better at the visitors' second goal on the stroke of half-time? Possibly. But the Albert Gudmundsson corner came off John Souttar, Grant Hanley and finally Lewis Ferguson before it trundled over his line. It was a comedy or errors. The Oldham-born keeper, too, flapped at the header Victor Palsson got on target at a Gudmondsson free-kick and failed to keep it out. There was a lengthy VAR check to see if the scorer had been offside. The defender, though, was on when the ball was played through to him. System malfunction With Kieran Tierney considered fit enough to start once again, Clarke reverted to the five man defence which had served him so well during the opening games of the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign. He positioned the Celtic full-back on the left of three centre-backs and deployed Robertson at wing back outside him. (Image: Jane Barlow) It did not work, either defensively or offensively. Yes, the hosts created a few chances and levelled when John Souttar held off Mikael Egill Ellertsson and nodded a Max Johnston corner home. But the players looked uncomfortable in the system and there were far, far too many open spaces for their opponents to exploit. Billy Gilmour, Scott McTominay and Lewis Ferguson, who have picked up silverware in Italy with Napoli and Bologna respectively this term, started together in midfield for just the third time. But they proved incapable of turning things around. Clarke needs to have a rethink. Tierney and Robertson and have played in a flat back four together at international level in the past and can do so again in future if required. At this moment, a move to a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3 is worth trying. There is no point persevering with a system which functioned effectively in the past if it is not working now. Scotland switched to a back four when Clarke made a triple substitution in the second half and looked better for it. Bright Hirst It may take Scotland supporters a little time to get used to a striker called Hirst playing up front for them even if his surname is spelt differently from a certain former England centre forward. But members of the Tartan Army may have to get used to the Ipswich Town man George, who was preferred to Che Adams, James Wilson, Kieron Bowie and Tommy Conway up front, leading the line for them. Clarke is clearly an admirer of the former England age-group player, who qualifies to play for this country through his paternal grandfather, as this was the third game in a row he has fielded him. He came on in both of the Greece games back in March. Read more: But this was a first start for him. He showed why was given the nod despite failing to find the target during his time on the park. He headed a John McGinn chip over, forced a one-handed save from Elias Rafn Olafsson after meeting a Scott McTominay cutback with a first-time shot and had a goal, correctly, chalked off for offside. He received a warm round of applause when he was replaced by Adams. Rightly so. He showed he has much to offer despite the result. To the Max Johnston, who helped Sturm Graz to retain their Bundesliga title in Austria this season, caught Clarke's eye in training at Lesser Hampden this week and started at right wing-back ahead of both Anthony Ralston of Celtic and the returning Nathan Patterson of Everton. He had some good moments and set up the Scotland goal. It was also nice to see Lennon Miller, the teenage Motherwell midfielder, make his first appearance for his country. He came on for Tierney as Scott McKenna replaced Hanley. Patterson later took over from Johnston and Tommy Conway came on for McTominay. But none of the replacements made a significant difference. Tartan Army boo boys The boos and jeers which rang out at the half-time and full-time whistle told a story. The Scotland supporters were furious with the insipid performance they had witnessed. A vast improvement against Liechtenstein in Vaduz on Monday is now needed to get the fans back onside ahead of the World Cup qualifying opener against Denmark.
