Scotland's hot topic dismissed as former boss labels major Steve Clarke World Cup decision as 'pointless'

Clarke, 62, will see his current deal with the national team expire after the World Cup, and called for an end to speculation about his future following the 1-0 friendly defeat to Ivory Coast on Tuesday. However, he had previously suggested that he would prefer to have the matter resolved before heading to North America this summer.

Scotland’s opening fixture against Haiti on June 13 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough is now just 71 days away, meaning anticipation for the tournament is gradually rising. With Clarke’s squad set to return to the World Cup after a long 28-year absence, Strachan has urged the conversations around the manager to stop, insisting that the focus focus has to be on the tournament.

“I don't think any Scottish fan is interested right now if Steve signs a new contract now,” said Strachan. “They're too busy enjoying it. I bet if he walks down the street tomorrow with Steve Clarke anywhere, no Scotland fan will say, ‘You've got to sign a new contract’ until at least after the World Cup.

“Nobody's interested, the players are probably not interested, Steve's not interested. All they're thinking about is, how do we get the maximum out of our World Cup performances? That is it. I was in a similar situation where my contract finished at the end of the qualifying games. There was no way I was going to sign a new contract because I didn't know how I was going to feel after being five years in the job, whether we won, whether we lost.

“The same with the committee in Scotland. I understand that totally. You never know how you're going to feel after a World Cup campaign, especially the long one. Then you go and you play in the World Cup finals itself. It could go extremely well, and then you get offered a new contract. It could go badly, but you don't get one and you understand that.

“There's no point in Scotland and Steve Clarke sitting down and getting a contract just now. We all know the position and it really shouldn't be a conversation piece. The conversation should be all about enjoying the World Cup platform and what will be will be, and I think that's what Steve wants. The Scottish FA are the same. I know for a fact they're all excited about being there. Everybody in that building is excited to be there. You can stick this in the background, nobody cares about Steve Clarke's contract. None. It's only the media.”

Strachan has also urged supporters not to read too much into the back-to-back friendly defeats by Japan and Ivory Coast last week, and insisted that Clarke was likely just using them to try to come to a final conclusion over which players he wants to take to the World Cup as part of his 26-man squad.

“Once you get a bad result, there will be calls to leave,” Strachan told OLBG. “Then you get two good results, ‘Oh well, he needs to sign a new contract.’ The world of football revolves within five minutes. It's split seconds. Does he want to go on again? Can you face this for another two years as a manager? Do the Scottish FA think he can do this for two years? So it all revolves around what happens this summer.

“It's got nothing to do with the now, and it has absolutely nothing to do with friendlies. Steve Clarke could do without the friendlies. He'll have all his squad picked apart from two, maybe. That is it. He's got it picked or he might be then looking at another two midfield players. That is it.”

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