Kris Boyd picks his predicted Scotland XI vs Croatia

BEN DOAK wouldn’t have been in my Scotland line-up for Croatia a few days ago.

But after James Forrest withdrew from the squad, the Liverpool winger is now.

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The Celtic wideman’s injury has ruled him out of Saturday’s Nations League clash in Zagreb.

I would have started a fit Forrest against Luka Modric & Co but his exit means this could be Doak’s ideal time to shine.

There is a lot of hype around the teenager and we need to be careful with how he’s managed going forward.

As a nation, it wouldn’t be fair to pin all of our collective hopes on an 18-year-old.

But sometimes as a young player, being put in when you don’t really expect it is the best thing that can happen to you.

Sensibly, Doak has made a loan move to Middlesbrough this season and he’s started their last three games.

He’s playing at a good level in the Championship and is back fit after some injury issues last term.

Scotland still have four more Nations League matches but this is all about preparation for the World Cup qualifiers.

That means getting Doak ready to come in and make a big contribution in that campaign.

He needs minutes at this level and he needs to become more established in the squad.

In an ideal world, Steve Clarke maybe would have used him off the bench.

But football doesn’t always go to plan and this could now be a sink-or-swim scenario for Doak against Croatia after Forrest left the squad.

For me, the rest of the team pretty much picks itself — starting with Craig Gordon back as the No 1 goalkeeper.

I wrote last month that it could be time to hand the Hearts veteran a recall and take Angus Gunn out of the firing line.

Mistakes were creeping in from the Norwich City man and injury means there will be a spell on the sidelines for him now.

I still maintain it was the right decision not to take big Craig to the Euros in the summer.

But he’s back as Hearts’ No 1 again, he’s looking sharper and he deserves a chance with Scotland again.

The big man’s career story is fascinating and, while he will turn 42 in December, age shouldn’t be a barrier.

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Craig has missed chunks of his career through injury and won’t have the wear and tear on his body that others do.

He doesn’t seem in any rush to retire and his return between the posts for his 76th international cap will be the latest twist in a long career.

In front of him, I’d have John Souttar and Ryan Porteous as the central-defensive pairing.

Souttar has been excellent for Rangers this season and deserves an opportunity to show what he can do for Scotland.

Porteous made his big mistake with THAT red card in the Euros opener against Germany.

He will be desperate to repay the Tartan Army and I fancy he could work well with Souttar.

Andy Robertson will captain the team at left-back, while I would give Nicky Devlin his chance on the right.

Everyone knows that Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson will be the two players fighting it out for that role when they return from injury.

The core aren’t getting any younger and it makes me wonder if the SFA will soon be asking if any more English players out there have Scottish grannies.

Kris Boyd

Anthony Ralston has filled in for them recently and his pre-match media duties suggest he will start tonight.

But Devlin’s had an excellent start to the season for Aberdeen and deserves a chance.

His confidence must be high after the Dons’ 13-game winning streak and it seems a natural step for him to start for Scotland.

It’s hard for the likes of Ralston to play at that elite international level when they aren’t getting minutes for their club.

Incredibly Alan Hutton won 17 Scotland caps while he didn’t play a single game for Aston Villa — but he was a freak of nature!

On Saturday night, it will be vital to have players who are up to speed and Devlin comes in that category.

Kenny McLean and Billy Gilmour seem likely to play as the two holding midfielders and I have no issue with that.

I get the calls for Ryan Christie to play in there as that’s where he is operating with great success for Bournemouth these days.

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But with John McGinn among those missing, he’s needed higher up the pitch against Croatia.

Scott McTominay will adopt his usual role as an attacking midfielder and I’d start Christie and Doak either side of lone striker Che Adams.

The Torino hitman has had a decent start to life in Serie A and he’d get the nod ahead of Lyndon Dykes for me.

There is good experience in that side and that could balance out the inclusion of Doak as the young kid.

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But whatever team Clarke puts out, he just has to find a way to get a result.

Throw whatever stat you want out there — one win in 14 games, no wins in eight competitive fixtures — they all make for pretty grim reading.

With Croatia twice, Portugal and Poland still to come in this Nations League section, it could end up being one win in 18 games very easily.

Defeat tonight will lead to yet another post-mortem and I do have concerns about the squad moving forward.

Getting Hickey, Patterson, McGinn and Kieran Tierney back from injury will only make it stronger, but where is the next batch coming through?

This has been a successful Scotland squad and maybe they are now paying the price for raising expectations by reaching successive Euros.

But the core aren’t getting any younger and it makes me wonder if the SFA will soon be asking if any more English players out there have Scottish grannies.

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