Scotland reaction: Did Steve Clarke strike a deal with the devil as goalkeeper issue overtaken

Steve Clarke will rightly point out that it’s not his fault that he succeeded in taking the jeopardy out of this latest international window by qualifying at the first time of asking. Scotland won their group. Although they can’t live off the night they qualified forever, the thrilling win against Denmark was still only just over 130 days ago.

Such was the quality of the goals, maybe the gods have decreed that Scotland will never score again. Or perhaps it’s the deal Steve Clarke struck with the devil at Glasgow Cross: the trade-off for spectacular overhead goals and worldies from the halfway line is the snatching at shots and scruffy efforts we have witnessed in the last two matches against Japan and then, on Tuesday night in Liverpool, against Ivory Coast.

Little has gone right for Scotland since qualifying although the fate of others, with Italy at the forefront, has helped put things into perspective. Clarke, meanwhile, has tried to draw a line under the issue of his future by declaring the matter “finished” after Scotland’s second successive 1-0 defeat. He explained that he didn’t want it serving as a distraction in the run up to the World Cup. Some hope.

The Azzurri could do worse than sound out Clarke about his feelings on switching to Italy following the World Cup when former Rangers midfielder Gennaro Gattuso pays the inevitable price for their failure to qualify.

Clarke has reached three of the last four major finals. Some of the Tartan Army may have tired of him but he remains a catch for someone. The question of what happens after the World Cup will continue to be a talking point, whether Clarke likes it or not. But there are other perhaps more urgent takeaways from an international window that have left the manager with plenty of food for thought. Two friendlies and zero goals underline that, after a 28-year wait, perhaps the tournament everyone yearned to see Scotland in again has come around just a little too soon.

All we are saying is give us a goal

Goalkeeper remains an issue but perhaps the main problem is the worry over goals. As in who’s getting them. The presence of joint record top goalscorer Kenny Dalglish at the Hill Dickinson Stadium served almost to mock Clarke. Of Scotland’s last four goals at World Cups, two have been penalties and another was from a flicked-on corner. Goals from open play are hard to come by at the best of times. Scotland have a precious opportunity against Haiti – win the opening game and progressing to the second stage suddenly looks very achievable. Scoring is therefore non-negotiable. Che Adams and more so Lyndon Dykes look like what they are: the best that was on offer five years ago. George Hirst is strong and willing but, as Clarke noted afterwards, needs a goal. Perhaps Clarke ought to have run the rule over the two Olis, Burke and McBurnie.

Keiron Bowie must also come back into the equation - and almost certainly will in the initial 55-man squad Clarke selects. Lawrence Shankland can provide a goal threat when he’s fit but the manager seems dead set against starting him. On hot nights against mobile defences, he might be right. As it stands, the currently out of touch Adams probably remains the best bet.

Goalie situation far from ideal

Clarke gave Liam Kelly and Scott Bain a half each and explained his thinking afterwards. He wanted to hand Kelly and Bain more international experience in case they are required in North America. “Maybe Craig (Gordon) doesn’t make it. Maybe Angus doesn’t make it, that was the thinking on that,” he said, slightly terrifyingly. The manager has to accept that it is very probable Gunn, his likely No 1 World Cup keeper, won’t play again this season given his back-up role at Nottingham Forest. Gordon will need some game-time against Curacao if he recovers in time from injury. Whoever is starting against Haiti will need to feature against Bolivia in the last World Cup warm-up. At least Gunn looked solid enough against Japan. Clarke will have to rely on him keeping himself sharp in hopefully very competitive Forest training sessions. It is a far from ideal situation.

Centre half partnership a positive

As Clarke insisted, friendlies are primarily about avoiding injuries and then quality of performance. The result comes in a distant third in order of importance. Everyone seemed to survive two very competitive games. For Lennon Miller (see later) and certain others, that was easy, given they didn't tread the turf at all. As for the performances, they were so-so. The second 45 minutes against Ivory Coast might have been the best spell but even so, the Africans had chances to add to their lead. But one of the real positives was the partnership between Scott McKenna and Jack Hendry in the opening game. They seem compatible – a left and right footed player next to one another - and might well have supplanted Hanley and John Souttar for the centre-half roles in a back four. The Hanley Age might well be over.

Gannon-Doak’s pace sorely missed

It is strange to identify someone who was not involved in either game among takeaways from the international break. But it was a classic case of a player's reputation being enhanced by not playing. The fear is that the level of expectation being placed on a 20-year-old’s shoulders proves unbearable and completely unrealistic. “It’s all right, Gannon-Doak will be back to save our souls” seems to be the gist of it. The winger might have spoken very movingly about his own religious convictions recently, but it’s ridiculous to anoint him with this saviour role, particularly since he is still getting up to speed following that horrific hamstring injury sustained against Denmark. Then again, it’s hard to deny it, the return of someone with genuine pace can’t come quickly enough.

Miller left kicking his heels

There were always going to be some players who didn’t feature, but it seemed particularly regrettable in Miller's case. He joined the likes of Andy Irving and Grant Hanley kicking their heels on the sidelines for both games. The 19-year-old seems to be settling well into Italian football and might have expected some minutes. Instead, he watched the likes of Kenny McLean, who played the whole match against Japan, get on in front of him against Ivory Coast. A cameo might not have told us much but it’s nearly a year since the midfielder, now with Udinese, looked so good against, admittedly, moderate opposition in the form of Liechtenstein.