Steve Clarke ‘disappointed’ Scotland Nations League fixtures not on TV

Steve Clarke has expressed disquiet that Scotland’s Nations League fixtures against Croatia and Portugal in this international window will not be screened on television. Live coverage of the matches will only be available on the YouTube channels of Viaplay and the Scottish FA in the UK, a matter which has caused considerable anger among Scotland’s support and parliamentarians.

The withdrawal of Viaplay from the UK market has left them unwillingly holding all Scotland’s competitive games until 2028. ITV stepped in to buy Scotland defeats against Poland and Portugal last month but no such deal was completed this time around despite supposed interest from the BBC and Premier Sports. Saturday evening’s clash in Zagreb and Portugal’s visit to Hampden Park on Tuesday will mark the first occasions since a 2014 friendly against Poland that Scotland games have not been shown on linear television.

“You’ve got to be disappointed that nobody’s picked it up and put it on television,” said Clarke, the Scotland manager. “It would be nice for the fans to sit and watch the team and hopefully we can play as well as we did last month but come out with good results.”

Clarke admirably refused to engage with the fact England’s October Nations League games have been sub-contracted to another broadcaster. Scotland are in Group A of the Nations League, with England a tier below. “I’m not getting involved with that,” he added. “But I have the same feeling as the Scotland fans back home. It’s a sore one. That’s the first thing, to be disappointed.”

Clarke led a depleted Scottish party to Zagreb on Friday. James Forrest became the latest player to be ruled out of the Croatia match earlier in the day but could yet feature against the Portuguese. Scotland need a boost; their current run is of one win in 14 outings.

“It’s horrible,” admitted Clarke. “Not winning games, it’s horrible. But I have to try and look at the big picture. I’m not saying we’re using this campaign to prepare for the next qualifying campaign. But there is an element of that where we can use these matches to try and prepare ourselves.

“Because the ultimate aim for me, I’ve already spoken about it, is I would love to go to a World Cup with my country. And that’s the challenge that I’m focused on.

“When you have so many injuries, there are opportunities for other players. If they’re given that opportunity, it’s down to them to grab that chance with both hands.”

The 41-year-old Craig Gordon will return in goal for Scotland. Mateo Kovacic will miss out for Croatia as he awaits the birth of his second child. Luka Modric has warned his teammates not to underestimate Scotland despite recent form. “We are expecting a very difficult match,” Modric said. “Of course we play at home in front of our fans, we accept the role of favourites, but we expect a tight match.”