Super Steve Clarke

A member of Kilmarnock FC’s in house media team once revealed some career advice he had been given by the then Rugby Park boss, Steve Clarke. “Do the basics brilliantly”. In one short sentence, the full philosophy of Clarke was unearthed, and this particular philosophy is the very reason he’s been such a resounding success as Scotland manager.

Following a debut 2-1 victory over Cyprus, Scotland went on to lose the next four matches, scoring one, conceding thirteen. Since that point there’s been a few bumps in the road but the trajectory has principally headed in a northern direction to the point the national side now sit top of Euro 2024 qualifying group A having taken nine points from a possible nine.

International management is a tricky path to navigate. Lose a game you can have six months to rectify it. There’s no transfer market to buy your way out of trouble, you’ve got what you’ve got and you’ve got to make it work. The approach taken by Clarke straddles finely both the pragmatic and the holistic.

In those early days the doubters were vociferous and incessant. The one person not listening was the one who mattered the most. Steve Clarke knew this was coming, but he knew he’d find a way.

For three years prior to his appointment two successive Scotland managers had tried, and failed, to find a way of incorporating both Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney into the starting XI. That’s all a distant memory now. Clarke’s three at the back solution hasn’t just squeezed them both in for the sake of it, it’s getting the absolute maximum from the two most talented players at the managers disposal. Robertson aggressively marauds down the left flank, Tierney covers the space, is clean in the tackle and crisp in the pass.

It’s not just the two flagship players who are thriving though, this set up is to the benefit of the collective and not the individual. This is a flexible shape, five at the back when out of possession, three when in. It takes intelligence to execute, an intelligence that comes directly from the boss. This approach is his brainchild. Scotland have had three different assistants since Clarke came in yet nothing has changed.

To use a phrase that will be relevant until the end of time, Scotland are hard to beat. Spain came away from Hampden with their tales between their legs and even the great Erling Haaland could’t find the net against them from open play.

At the opposite end of the pitch Scotland have found a solution in the from of a burly Australian. Lyndon Dykes is not the easiest on the eye but he doesn’t even need to score to do his job. His physical presence and insatiable work ethic render him a nightmare for opposing centre-halves.

Dykes himself is also a testament to another of Clarke’s main attributes – man management. The Queen’s Park Rangers forward literally turned down the opportunity to represent the country of his birth after hearing Clarke’s sales pitch. Not a game goes by without the manager highlighting his appreciation for the role his forward plays.

Throw all these variables into the pot and you get what you have now, a team greater than the sum of it’s parts punching above it’s weight and taking scalps left, right and center. Scotland are currently the envy of every other similarly ranked nation. They are a unit, they are a team. Clarke has created a well oiled machine not reliant on one singular part unlike Wales who are now staring bleakly into the face of a post Gareth Bale world.

Scotland, is a sceptical nation. The people, the football people, are hard to win over. Trust doesn’t come easy, pessimism and self deprecation are the currency we deal in here. Steve Clarke, the humble, understated football manager is turning all that on it’s head.

There’s an open and justifiable confidence that in front of a packed, raucous Hampden crowd Scotland will see off Georgia on Tuesday night sealing a fourth win from four and making it almost inconceivable that they will fail to make it to Germany next summer. Before this campaign started, Steve Clarke stated he didn’t think Scotland would need the insurance policy of a play off to qualify, and just like so much where the Scotland national team are concerned, he’s being proven correct.

By Calum Maltman – @BlogEFI

Photograph credit: Martin Le Roy – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HampdenParkPanorama.JPG