Sebastien Pocognoli is set to name his second Scotland squad on Tuesday after consecutive home defeats in the Nations League. The Belgian faces a difficult selection task with his team’s League B1 future still uncertain.
Scotland need at least four points from their final two matches, against bottom side North Macedonia at Hampden and table-topping Switzerland away, to retain a chance of finishing second. They also require Slovenia to drop points in both of its remaining fixtures. A defeat in the opening match could leave Scotland facing relegation to League C.
Scott McTominay is expected to return after missing Pocognoli’s first squad. The midfielder has scored four goals in two matches for Napoli since recovering from minor heart surgery. His inclusion could put one of Scotland’s current midfield options at risk, although Billy Gilmour, Lewis Ferguson, Ryan Christie and John McGinn have all remained important figures for their clubs.
Kristi Montgomery, Lennon Miller and Kenny McLean are among the other midfielders competing for places. Montgomery continues to start for Blackburn Rovers, while Miller recently began a match for Udinese. McLean, however, has played only 45 minutes as a substitute for Norwich since withdrawing from the previous Scotland squad through injury and is a doubt for Tuesday’s club game against Derby County.
Defensive selection is another concern. Scott McKenna has missed Dinamo Zagreb’s last two matches and is expected to be unavailable for a further two weeks. Luis Binks returned to the Brondby team in their win over Aarhus, while Jack Hendry, Stephen Welsh and Luke Graham are regular starters for their clubs.
Kieran Tierney is back playing regularly for Celtic after missing the previous squad through injury. Andy Robertson has started Tottenham’s last three wins, although the Scotland captain is not completing many matches. Josh Doig’s hopes of challenging for a place were weakened by Sassuolo’s 6-2 home defeat by Lazio.
Right-back remains a particular worry for Pocognoli. Celtic’s Colby Donovan is the only regular starter among the leading options, while Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson have mainly been substitutes for Brentford and Torino respectively.
Scott Bain’s performance in Falkirk’s historic victory over Celtic could strengthen his position as Scotland’s goalkeeping reserve. His form is especially notable after Angus Gunn was left on the bench for San Jose Earthquakes against Real Salt Lake following criticism of recent performances.
Che Adams could return after scoring twice in four games for Torino, while Lawrence Shankland remains unavailable through injury. Oli McBurnie has also improved his case by scoring his first two goals of the season in Hull City’s last two Premier League matches, despite the club’s eight-game winless run.
Kieron Bowie scored against North Macedonia last month but has gone five matches without finding the net and was a substitute for Sassuolo at the weekend. Robbie Ure has scored twice for Sevilla since the last international break, although he was again on the bench in Sunday’s defeat by Getafe. James Wilson has also gone eight games without scoring for Hearts.
If Pocognoli uses wingers, Ben Gannon-Doak, Josh McPake and Findlay Curtis could also be considered. Gannon-Doak started Bournemouth’s wins over Aston Villa and AC Milan, McPake has continued to impress for Hearts and Curtis has made an impact from the bench for Rangers.
The squad may appear relatively settled, but deciding the starting line-up could prove the more difficult task as Scotland approach two matches that will determine their Nations League fate.
Sources: BBC Sport.