John Souttar has been called up to the Scotland squad for the friendlies with the Netherlands and Northern Ireland later this month.
The 27-year-old has been on a fine run of appearances at Rangers as of late and even earned praise from Philippe Clement for his much improved fitness.
But there is no place in Steve Clarke’s squad for Ibrox teammate Ryan Jack, who has suffered a fresh injury blow following the first leg of the Europa League clash with Benfica.
The situation has raised the question surrounding a potential new Rangers deal in the summer whilst missing Steve Clarke’s final Scotland squad before Euro 2024 doesn’t bode well for the midfielder.
With John Souttar Rangers’ only representative in the Scotland squad, other notable additions include ex-Gers right-back Nathan Patterson (Everton), ex-Ibrox youth Billy Gilmour (Brighton), and Ibrox-linked striker Lawrence Shankland (Hearts).
John Souttar earns Scotland call-up
John Souttar is certainly very deserving of a Scotland recall and we suspect the Rangers centre-back will be a big part of Steve Clarke’s plans.
Emerging as Connor Goldson’s bonafide centre-back partner in recent weeks, it appears the Rangers defender is also very much a part of Philippe Clement’s.
Bouncing back from a series of injuries to finally find his feet and more consistent form at Rangers, let’s hope it’s the start of the 27-year-old reaching his full potential.
John Souttar has the ability to play every minute of Scotland’s Euro 2024 campaign but for the first time since making his injury return, the player’s ability to handle the rigours of both club and international football is set to be tested.
John Souttar has seven caps for Scotland, and one goal, his last appearance coming as a substitute in the friendly v France in October last year.
Ryan Jack’s Euro 2024 dream fading
Steve Clarke has shown that he trusts Ryan Jack in previous Scotland squads but with midfield an increasingly competitive position the Rangers midfielder faces a real challenge to secure a spot.
The likes of Premier League trio John McGinn (Aston Villa), Scott Tominay (Man Utd), and Billy Gilmour (Brighton) are Scotland regulars, whilst Celtic captain Callum McGregor and £22m-rated Bologna star Lewis Ferguson are also expected to earn a call-up.
For this squad, McGregor misses out with injury whilst Norwich City’s Kenny McLean is called up alongside the aforementioned other four.
English-based players like Ryan Christie (Bournemouth) and Stuart Armstrong (Southampton) also earned calls.
It shows just how competitive that area of the pitch is for Scotland and Ryan Jack will be hoping to turn it round before the end of the season.
Injury forced the midfielder to miss the European Championships in 2020 and the 31-year-old Rangers midfielder will be desperate to secure a place this time around.
Ryan Jack has 15 caps with the national team and was involved during the last international break, playing against Norway but sustaining an injury with Rangers that had kept him out until this month.
