Craig Levein stands firm on Anglo-Scots call-ups

Craig Levein continues to make no apology for the recruitment strategy which has led to the inclusion of the latest Anglo-Scot in the Scotland squad. Blackpool midfielder Matt Phillips’ call-up for next week’s friendly in Slovenia has both irked the English Football Association and further dismayed those who question whether it is desirable to have a Scotland squad which is so heavily reliant on English-born players.

Of the 24 players named by Levein yesterday, seven are, to all intents and purposes, English. It has added further fuel to the fire for those critics of the Scotland manager’s willingness to award caps to players who some suspect are making a convenient switch of nationality.

Intriguingly, Levein also finds himself under fire for refusing to select the Shrewsbury-born Steven Fletcher. The Scotland manager yesterday underlined that he remains firm in his stance on that front. Since making himself unavailable ahead of a Celtic Nations Cup fixture against Northern Ireland, the player has declined to get in touch with Levein to declare himself ready to play for Scotland again. The situation has become more awkward for Levein given the form of the Wolves striker, who has scored ten goals this season.

“I can only tell you, through the evidence, that, in my opinion, Steven doesn’t want to play for Scotland,” Levein repeated said yesterday. When one reporter described Fletcher as “Scotland’s best striker”, Levein flashed back with, “well, that’s your opinion”.

He continued: “My great interest is in working with people who want to play. I can tell you that nothing has changed. Through yourselves and through other mediums, he knows exactly how – if he wants to play for Scotland – he gets back in.”

On his Twitter feed yesterday, the player wrote: “Maybe 1 day, ay?” in a posting sent to four friends. That day will have to be post-Levein, it seems certain. “My job is to manage the team,” stressed Levein. “That team consists of people who want to play. If he wants to play he knows how he can get back in.”

The gaze tends to be drawn south when it comes to the Scotland international football team these days. Understandably, Levein preferred to talk up Phillips rather than dwell on Fletcher’s exile.

The 20-year-old was born in Aylesbury and has already celebrated scoring in an England shirt, which he did for the England Under 19 team. He has also played in a World Cup with England after being called up by the Under 20 side last summer.

The FA have become agitated by Levein’s border raids, which strengthens the impression that the Scotland manager has managed to pull off something of a coup in the case of Phillips, who has scored ten times for Blackpool since Christmas.

“There has been an indication that they are not particularly happy about it but I see that as a compliment in some regards,” said Levein, whose attention was drawn to a recent newspaper report from south of the border which outlined the English FA’s frustration at Levein’s eagerness to poach players. Chelsea’s Josh McEachren, who is currently on loan at Swansea, is also on Levein’s radar, as is Hull City’s Cameron Stewart and Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey.

In Levein’s defence, Phillips came to Scotland rather than the other way around. The first step was taken by the player’s Scots-born grandfather. He phoned a Scottish journalist in order to alert Levein of his grandson’s desire to play for Scotland, something which took Ian Holloway, Phillips’ manager at Blackpool, by surprise. Although an appearance in next Wednesday’s friendly will not tie him down to Scotland, Levein is keen to offer Phillips a taste of what he can expect in a dark blue jersey prior to the first World Cup qualifier in September. His inclusion next week is subject to Fifa clearance, expected to be confirmed within the next few days.

“The increase in the quality of the pool had gained a bit of momentum and there is an awareness that we are actively trying to give ourselves the best chance possible of qualifying for the World Cup,” explained Levein, when dismissing concerns about the inclusive nature of his recruitment policy. Jordan Rhodes, the free-scoring Huddersfield Town striker who was schooled in Scotland, is another of Levein’s finds, though he will feature for the Scotland Under 21 side next week against the Netherlands.

“One of the things that is really important to me is that, although we are actively looking to increase our pool size, we don’t want to lose anybody that is in Scotland,” continued Levein. “We have had two recent cases of [losing] very, very good players [to Ireland] – Aiden McGeady and James McCarthy. This is as much of a disappointment to me as it is pleasing to get good quality players in. We are not forgetting about the home-grown talent, but I think it’s really important that we widen the net and give ourselves the best chance.”

Levein pointed to the example of James Morrison, who, if selected, will gain his 20th Scotland cap against Slovenia next week, despite having been brought up in the north-East of England.

“I played with loads of these kind of guys when I was playing and they did, in some ways, display even more patriotism than the guys who were born here,” argued Levein. “I think they feel they have got to do more.”

There is no doubt about James Forrest’s Scottish credentials, nor is there any debate about whether the skilful Celtic winger merits inclusion. Levein is excited by the what both Forrest and Phillips can bring add in terms of pace and trickery. “One of the problems we have had is having good players, but not having that eliminator – the guy who can take people out of the game,” he said. “We always seem to have to rely on two v one situations rather one v one situations.

“In international football, a lot of it is about counter-attacking and you need speed to break from the back,” he added. “We are trying to build this team of players who have what I think are important assets for international football.”