Scotland's talisman 'in good place' - and Steve Clarke has words for Donny Strathie as tribute planned

McTominay and his teammates will certainly need to be at their best against a side ranked sixth in the world if Scotland are to make history by reaching the knockout stage of a major tournament for the first ever time in Foxborough on Friday.

A draw would almost certainly see them achieve this while a win would keep Clarke’s side at the top of Group C and in pole position to qualify as group winners.

Although McTominay was described as “perfect” by the manager before last weekend’s group opener against Haiti, the midfielder found the going hard in sweltering conditions having been laid low by a stomach bug 48 hours before the match.

The Napoli midfielder did hit the post with a shot in the first half and played the entire 90 minutes. Clarke expects the player to display his “talismanic” qualities against a Morocco side who might not be as concerned with stopping him as Haiti were.

“I think the Haiti game was a struggle for a lot of the players, not just Scott,” said Clarke. “I thought Haiti controlled our midfield very well. So you have to give credit to them. Sometimes you don't get the chance to bring your attributes to the game because of what the opposition do. I think that might have been the case. Scott's in a good place and ready to go again.”

‘I’ve got a lot of key players’

Clarke is becoming accustomed to being asked about McTominay in pre-match press conferences, which reporters from all over the world attend. One asked Clarke to expand on the 29-year-old midfielder’s importance to the team.

“Scott has been one of our key players,” he said. “I'm lucky, I've got a lot of key players. I’ve got John McGinn, Grant Hanley, Kenny McLean, people like that. We've built a really good squad over the years.

“Scott gets a lot of headlines, but he's also one of the first to understand that without the help of his teammates, it's more difficult for him to be that talisman,” he added. “If he can be that talisman tomorrow, then that'd be great.”

Clarke is under no illusion about the size of task facing Scotland. Although they are one place below Brazil in the current Fifa rankings, he reckons Morocco could be a tougher proposition than the South Americans. “Morocco reached the last four of the previous World Cup in Qatar,” he said. “I think this Moroccan side is every bit as good, if not better, and can certainly go on to become better. They'll have aspirations to be in the last four again.”

Clarke began his latest pre-match press conference in the United States by paying tribute to Donny Strathie, a member of the Tartan Army who has died in Boston. The 76-year-old from Grangemouth collapsed in a hotel on Sunday, the day after Scotland’s win over Haiti.

The grandfather only had a ticket to attend Friday’s match against Morocco. Strathie’s family have asked fans at the Boston Stadium to applaud in the 76th minute as a tribute to the long-serving Tartan Army member.

“Among all the great news around the World Cup for Scotland this is obviously very sad,” said Clarke. “It’s sad for his family, his daughters and his grandchildren. I think Donny’s ambition was to see Scotland at a World Cup again. My thoughts and condolences are with his family.”

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