With Scotland’s final friendly before Euro 2024 against Finland on Friday night at Hampden, three Celtic stars will have the opportunity to state their case to be on that plane to Germany.
Greg Taylor, James Forrest and Anthony Ralston are all vying to be part of Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad as there is no doubt that Callum McGregor is already there.
The 2-0 win over Gibraltar didn’t really better or worsen James Forrest’s case and the Celtic winger, along with Taylor and Ralston, will be hoping that the Finland match will give them a chance to give Steve Clarke something to think about.
However, it seems that one of the trio already has the endorsement of former Scotland fullback, Allan Hutton.
Ralston wins Scotland ‘battle’
Anthony Ralston is up against Ross McCrorie for a place at the Euros in Germany. And whilst McCrorie did ok in his debut against Gibraltar, Hutton believes that Ralston is the man that’s heading to Germany.
Hutton said [Daily Record print edition page 48], “I’d imagine we see Ralston against Finland. We felt the Finland game would be close to the starting line-up against Germany so it is a huge game for him.
“I think the battle is between those two. It was a big opportunity for Ross and it will be a big opportunity on Friday for Anthony.
“I was edging towards Ralston because he has the experience, he has the caps under his belt.
“It is a great battle between the two of them.”
I’ve said before on 67 Hail Hail that Ralston is the player Clarke should be taking. The Celtic fullback is strong, and reliable and has never let either Ange Postecoglou or Brendan Rodgers down whenever called upon.
Even for Scotland, Ralston is a stalwart. His performance against Holland was excellent despite the 4-0 defeat and he has experience of featuring in high-pressured games with Celtic.
That is something McCrorie doesn’t have. Yes, he has played in the odd Glasgow Derby but Ralston has featured regularly on the European scene for Celtic and has won trebles and performed in big cup finals.
Ralston has surely got to be the man that Clarke calls upon and the Celtic fans will also be hoping that Forrest and Taylor get the nod to face Europe’s best players later this month.