Grame Souness has sympathy for Gordon Strachan

Souness believes former international team-mate Gordon Strachan is the right man for the job and should escape any criticism for Friday night’s 2-1 defeat by Wales. Instead, the 59-year-old reckons the loss proves how big a job Strachan faces in trying to turn around the country’s fortunes with the players presently available to him.

Souness said: “It was a disappointing night for Scottish football because you are left thinking ‘where do we go from here if that’s the best we can offer?’ I am struggling to think of anything Gordon Strachan will take out of that game. You can’t put that result down to Gordon’s selection or tactics. He’s been dealt a difficult hand and has to do the best he possibly can with the cards he has. He’s the right man for the job, but he’s got a very difficult one. There’s no good being critical of him because you are not going to get anyone better.

“Gordon knew what he was taking on because, not so long ago, he was at Celtic. I am sure he also knows what Scotland has got coming through and it’s a difficult job at this time. He’s got to formulate a system that suits the players because you can’t go out and buy them at international level. You are stuck with the group that are around at that time.

“If it was Jose Mourinho or Fergie as Scotland’s manager, you are not going to get more out of those players.”

Souness played in a Scotland team littered with talent that was performing, like himself at Liverpool, at their peak at the top end of the English game. However, he believes Scotland are being left well behind, not only in their on-field skills, but also in their athleticism and speed.

In his Sunday newspaper column, Souness added: “It’s no good bitching against the manager. This is a lean time we find ourselves in and we have got to support him and the players. No-one goes out there to lose a game. They are giving everything they can, but right now that’s not good enough. When you look at the modern game it is about athletes. It’s about people who can cover ground quickly and can get up and down the pitch incessantly.

“Gareth Bale is a good example, so too Aaron Ramsey. The two Welsh midfielders seemed more athletic than us on Friday night and, sadly, you can say that about Scotland in comparison to most other nations.”