Steve Clarke handed Craig Gordon the chance to play his way into the Euro 2024 squad as he displayed his loyalty to the players who have served him well in recent years.
The 41-year-old is one of four goalkeepers included in a 25-man group for friendlies against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland this month as Clarke keeps his options open.
With Callum McGregor, Aaron Hickey and Jacob Brown missing out through injury, Clarke hopes to have some tough decisions to make when he whittles his squad down to 23 players by the June 7 deadline – seven days before Scotland take on Germany in the tournament opener.
There were no surprises in the latest squad. Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack is absent after being troubled by fitness issues in recent months while Josh Doig and Robby McCrorie have dropped out following November’s games against Georgia and Norway.
Lawrence Shankland retains his place after netting in Tbilisi following his late call-up while Angus Gunn, Gordon, John Souttar, Andy Robertson, Kieran Tierney and Grant Hanley are all back in following injury.
“It’s good to get a few back,” Clarke said. “Obviously there are still three or four missing that I would like to have been in the squad. But the key thing for me is to make sure that, come the start of May, I’ve got tough selections to make, everybody fit and available.
“If we can get to May and I have to make those tough decisions, obviously it will be unfortunate for the ones who miss out, but that’s part of the job, I have got to do it. I will be ready to do it.”
When asked if there was space for anyone to make a late run for the squad, he said: “There’s always opportunity but what I can’t really get my head around is this squad, you talk about the core squad, they haven’t let anybody down. They have done really well for their country and they deserve the chance to go to the Euros.”
Gordon has not been able to dislodge Zander Clark from the Hearts team since recovering from a double leg break but the 74-times capped goalkeeper has started in three Scottish Cup ties.
Clarke watched him keep a clean sheet as Steven Naismith’s side reached the semi-finals against Morton at Cappielow on Monday night.
The former Kilmarnock manager explained his reasoning behind picking four goalkeepers with Clark, Gunn and Gordon joined by Motherwell’s Liam Kelly.
“It gives us a chance to look at Craig up close because he has had three competitive games and, without being disrespectful to the opposition Hearts have played in the cup, probably not games where Craig was over-worked,” he said.
“So it will be nice to see Craig in training with the other goalkeepers. Three of those goalkeepers will go to the Euros and one will miss out.
“I will just assess everything I’ve got. Obviously with the make-up of a squad going into a tournament, there’s other factors as well involved in terms of squad stability and boys that have been in a squad a long time. It’s going to be an interesting decision.
“Obviously Zander has the number-one jersey at Hearts, which tells you a lot about the performances Zander has been putting in. Liam Kelly has been steady in the league again, as he always is, and it’s nice to have Angus Gunn back after missing the November games. It’s nice to have all four competing for three positions.
“There will be a number of factors – performance on the pitch, playing regularly, and just the make-up and the dynamic of the group, people that have been on the squad, players who train well.
“There’s a lot of centre-halves in there as well. I’m not going to be taking all those centre-backs, so there is a similar situation there. They have to impress, they have to play well at their clubs if given the opportunity to play, and then I’ve got to make the selection.”
Brown (knee) and Hickey (hamstring) are recovering from surgery but there is some uncertainty over McGregor’s Achilles problem with Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers last week stating a scan had been inconclusive.
Clarke said: “I had a brief chat with Callum with this week because I knew he was going to be missing this camp, but no big issues moving forward, I don’t think.”
Arteta hails 'phenomenal' Arsenal drive to take Man City all the way
Mikel Arteta hailed the "phenomenal" drive shown by his Arsenal side to push Manchester City all the way in the Premier League title race.
The Gunners moved one point clear of City at the Premier League summit on Sunday with a 1-0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
City have a chance to restore their advantage when they travel to Arsenal's fierce rivals Tottenham on Tuesday, before then hosting West Ham.
Regardless of what happens in midweek, Arsenal will go into their final game of the campaign at home to Everton with the title battle still alive.
Speaking to BBC Sport after his side's latest win, Arteta said: "It is a phenomenal thing they are doing."
However, Arteta was not entirely pleased with the manner of his side's slender victory, even if they were good value for the win overall.
"We weren't composed, clean enough, consistent enough and were unable to do the simple things right," he said. "That doesn't give you control.
"Some of the players have not been in this position; they don't know what is at stake and how you feel emotionally to have to win and win and win from December or January."
Arsenal's win was just their second in 17 Premier League trips to Old Trafford, most recently coming out on top in November 2020.
Lenadro Trossard scored what proved to be the winner with 20 minutes played, tapping in from close range after being set up by Kai Havertz.
"We needed a result today in a really difficult place," Arteta added. "Our history was not in favour of a result today.
"There was so much at stake and we're happy with the result. We started the game really well and were dominant.
"We scored the goal and I think the goal led to slightly bad things because we started to play too safe, too sideways, too backwards with not enough structure.
"We started to give the ball away in good areas and that is a danger against them. But we defended well and didn't concede too much."
Arsenal now find themselves cheering on Tottenham against City, knowing that anything other than a win for Pep Guardiola's men will leave their title fate in their own hands.
Asked if he will be watching that game, Arteta said: "We will be sat watching and it’s true we need the result in order to achieve [the title]. In football there are always possibilities."
Tuchel skips goodbye from fans after final Bayern home game
Departing Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel opted on Sunday to quietly slip into the changing rooms instead of joining his players to celebrate after the Bavarians beat Wolfsburg 2-0.
Tuchel will be leaving at the end of the season – a year earlier than his contract ends – following a disappointing campaign with no silverware.
The win came four days after Bayern's Champions League semi-final exit to Real Madrid confirmed their first season without a trophy in over a decade.
"These are the moments for the players," he said when asked why he did not join his squad who went in front of the Bayern ultras after their final home game of the season.
"I don't want to be in the spotlight there. That's for the team. I know that the cameras are there.
"I prefer to go in [to the changing rooms]. It is about the team. The fans are there for the team. They need to be celebrated."
There has been little to celebrate for Tuchel in his 14 months in charge, with Bayern having managed to win only the Bundesliga title last season after Borussia Dortmund slipped up on the final matchday.
He said he did not yet know what he would take away from his time at Bayern, who missed out on Bundesliga glory to Bayer Leverkusen this term.
"Last home game and what remains I don't really know," he said. "It will take some time to see what is left.
"It is a privilege to coach at this level. I came to win as many titles as possible. We did not succeed in that."
Juventus 1-1 Salernitana: Late Rabiot goal salvages home draw
Juventus snatched a 1-1 draw at home to relegated Salernitana courtesy of a late Adrien Rabiot goal that cancelled out a first-half header from Niccolo Pierozzi in Serie A on Sunday.
Juve are fourth on 67 points with two matches left, six points ahead of Atalanta, who have two games in hand.
Salernitana shocked the Allianz Stadium as unmarked Pierozzi headed home after 27 minutes following a corner.
But Juventus dominated the rest of the match and equalised in stoppage time when Rabiot slid the ball home at the back post after a corner was flicked on.
Bottom side Salernitana were doomed to the drop last month.
Juve play in the Italian Cup final against Atalanta on Wednesday in an effort to save a disappointing season and stop their winless streak at six matches in all competitions.
Data Debrief: Another stalemate for Juve
Juventus were grateful for a point come full-time, albeit it was a poor result in the grand scheme of things. Juve have now draw five successive matches in Serie A for the first time since between April and May 2009.
In fact, only Heidenheim of the Bundesliga (10) have drawn more matches than Juventus have (nine from 18 games) across Europe's top five leagues in 2024.
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