Key questions for Clarke in Scotland’s final pre-World Cup camp

Key questions for Clarke in Scotland's final pre-World Cup campThe last camp before the big one.

Steve Clarke and his Scotland players meet up for the first time since that night against Denmark, but the focus is now firmly on World Cup preparation, with a little more than two months to go until the national team leave for the United States.

This week's camp will be the final get-together before the squad reunites in June, so there is some vital work to do for the head coach and his staff.

Here, BBC Scotland looks at three key questions facing Clarke as he prepares for a friendly double-header against Japan and Ivory Coast.

While some may have expected Clarke to dip into the squads of Hearts and Motherwell for his latest selection, he sprang a surprise by turning to his former club Kilmarnock and plucking out teenage winger Findlay Curtis.

Although Scotland clearly lack depth in that area, with Bournemouth wide man Ben Gannon-Doak working his way back to full fitness, eyebrows were still raised at the decision.

While Clarke's men were staging that astonishing 4-2 victory over Denmark in November, Curtis was watching as a fan after being excluded from the Scotland Under-21s set-up.

To be in contention for a spot in the World Cup squad just months later is a remarkable rise for the 19-year-old, who is excelling under former Scotland winger Neil McCann in Kilmarnock's bid for Scottish Premiership survival.

On loan from Rangers – where he was coached by McCann last season – Curtis delivered another impressive showing on Saturday, scoring in the Ayrshire side's vital victory over bottom side Livingston.

Now he has an incredible opportunity to prove he is an immediate option for Clarke, and not just one for the future – but will he grasp it?

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Scotland assistant coach Steven Naismith hailed Curtis' drive to move out on loan and not be content with being a squad player at Rangers.

"This desire, this instinctive nature to get chances," Naismith added on BBC Sportscene when analysing the youngster's weekend goal.

"He's got a bit of pace, he's direct, he commits defenders – these are all things that have caught the eye."

Former Celtic and Hibernian midfielder Scott Allan added on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast: "When we don't have Gannon-Doak, we don't have someone who can really travel with the ball. Curtis does have that.

"Yes, he's still developing and doesn't always have that final ball, but that can be worked on. We aren't blessed with a lot of pace, especially in the attacking areas.

"You have to have pace in those areas, especially when at times we'll be forced back and when we're then trying to get up the pitch. Players with pace can be the difference."

How can it be fair to ask this about a Scotland side that finished top of their qualifying group with a record of four wins, one draw and one defeat to take the men's senior side back to a World Cup for the first time in almost three decades?

But the truth is, for most of a weird and wonderful campaign, the performance level was underwhelming at best. Clarke and his players did not shy away from that after certain matches.

The team were booed by their own support on multiple occasions and, had it not been for a shock draw between Denmark and Belarus to set up that glorious night against the Danes in November, the mood music now would be so different.

It was the reverse throughout the 2024 Nations League campaign. A shift to a 4-3-2-1 system improved displays against higher-calibre opposition, but the results were not there.

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A relegation play-off defeat by Greece then started a worrying trend of below-par showings, but results picked up throughout World Cup qualifying despite performances continuing to concern.

Clarke's Scotland have never been a team that has controlled and dominated games, and nobody is demanding that. Fans do, however, want to see the head coach release the handbrake.

This side's best nights have come when they have embraced chaos – just look back to November – but too often in recent times that gallus approach has come when they have been chasing games after cautious, and sometimes calamitous, starts.

Finding a balance and demonstrating that in the upcoming friendlies against challenging opposition will refuel the Tartan Army with hope that their heroes can make a mark in the US.

Scotland and their goalkeeping issue: the problem that will not go away.

The solution will likely be Angus Gunn, who already has 20 caps and has played for Clarke at a major tournament.

That will likely be the case again this summer if Hearts' injured goalkeeper Craig Gordon, 43, fails to recover in time.

The worry for Clarke is that Gunn has played just 45 minutes of football for Nottingham Forest this season and has not started a match since Scotland's 2-1 win over Belarus back in October.

There is a similar situation at right-back, with Brentford's Aaron Hickey injured again and Nathan Patterson of Everton and Celtic defender Anthony Ralston both struggling for action.

Even after returning from injury, 30-year-old Gunn has at times not featured in the Forest squad, with Sunday's win at Tottenham the latest example.

Other options in Clarke's set-up include Rangers' Liam Kelly, who has played three times this season, and Falkirk's first-choice goalkeeper Scott Bain.

Gunn still performed well for Scotland across their first four World Cup qualifiers despite being out of the picture at Forest, keeping clean sheets in Denmark and Belarus.

But what sort of effect will another five months of rustiness have? The upcoming double-header should reveal all.

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