STEVE CLARKE last night called Scotland Under-21s striker Tommy Conway into his squad for Euro 2024 after Liverpool’s Ben Doak became the latest addition to a lengthy list of casualties.
Lyndon Dykes was ruled out of a trip to Germany by a training ground injury last week, with 18-year-old Doak forced to withdraw after sitting out the uninspiring 2-0 win over minnows Gibraltar in the Algarve on Monday.
Shorn of options in attack, Clarke moved quickly to call in Bristol City’s uncapped striker Conway after he scored in Scotland Under-21’s 2-1 defeat to Turkey in Istanbul.
The 21-year-old scored 12 goals in 43 appearances for Bristol City this season and will now come into contention for a senior debut against Finland in the final warm-up game at Hampden on Friday night.
Already missing Lewis Ferguson and first-choice right-backs Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson, Clarke felt his side showed signs of apprehension in the win over Gibraltar, a nation ranked 203 in the world. Despite second-half goals from Ryan Christie and Che Adams securing the victory ahead of the opening game of the finals against Germany in Munich, Clarke acknowledged the wasteful finishing.
‘Don’t forget these players are nervous,’ said the Scotland boss. ‘They have the biggest tournament coming up for the country next week. They all have half a mind on Germany already.
Conway flew the flag for Scotland after touching down at Edinburgh Airport last night
Conway wheels away in celebration after scoring for Scotland Under-21s in Istanbul defeat
Ben Doak travelled to Faro but the Euros will come too soon after a season disrupted by injury
‘It sounds terrible to say that, but that’s just the way it is. It’s natural.
‘People won’t think of that. But until you are actually on the plane and on the way to Germany, there is always a doubt in the back of your mind.
‘Probably what happened with Lyndon on the training pitch the other day spooked them a little bit as well. You have to understand. They are human, they have emotions like everybody else.
‘They want to go on the plane for the Euros and be involved in what’s going to be a fantastic tournament, so you have to make allowances for that.’
Having granted permission for managers to up the size of squads from 23 to 26, UEFA require the definitive list two hours after the final whistle of Scotland’s final preparation game against Finland.
‘It’s quite a tricky one to be honest because you can put the team in at midnight on Friday,’ said Clarke. ‘You could tell someone on Thursday they are not going and then we pick up an injury on the Friday and you have to give them a cuddle and say, “I love you, you’re going”. It’s strange that they make us do it like this. But we will find a way.
Scotland boss Steve Clarke has wasted no time in giving Conway the nod for Euro 2024 place
Lyndon Dykes saw his Euro 2024 dream ended after a ‘freak’ training ground injury last week
A glum-looking Doak (second right) watched from the stands as Scotland edged out Gibraltar
‘I will be speaking to the players concerned who are not going to be in the 26 before the Friday game.’
The SFA have sold over 40,000 tickets for Finland’s visit.
Likely to be a very different affair to the low-key encounter before 2,000 fans against a limited Gibraltar side, Clarke hopes to use the game as a grand send-off for his players before they fly to Germany on Sunday.
He said: ‘That is what we are after, a good performance at home in front of our supporters to give them that little boost before we go to the tournament. That’s what we aim to do on Friday.’
Despite 24 efforts on goal against the minnows, Scotland mustered only five efforts on target in Faro and the addition of Conway to the squad will add depth to an area of the team causing growing concern.
Conway celebrates the goal that knocked West Ham out of the FA Cup back in January
‘I think it comes down a little bit to confidence,’ said Clarke. ‘Shanks (Lawrence Shankland) didn’t really have any clear-cut chances where you are thinking, “Go on, he’s getting there”.
‘It’s maybe something we need to look at — his positioning, especially on set-plays where he was maybe too far out from the centre of goal.’
