Scots wait on Miller after injury problem

Scotland continue to sweat over the fitness of striker Kenny Miller as the Cardiff City player prepared to be examined by the international squad’s medical staff after damaging his groin at the weekend against Hull City.

Miller is being given every opportunity to prove his fitness ahead of this weekend’s Euro 2012 qualifier with Liechtenstein and the clash with Spain four days later, although his club manager Malky Mackay said at the weekend he would be “amazed” if the player were to feature.

Scotland did suffer one definite withdrawal yesterday after Blackpool full back Stephen Crainey suffered an ankle injury in his side’s 5-0 win over Bristol City on Saturday. Rangers player Lee Wallace has been called up to the squad as a replacement.

It is the doubt over Miller’s involvement which will cause manager Craig Levein anxiety. He would have been a certain starter in both games due to his 15 strikes from 57 appearances to date. He is a key figure in Levein’s preferred system of 4-1-4-1 but the manager managed to sound philosophical at the weekend. “We’ll let the doctors and the physios assess him and if they deem him not fit to travel then he won’t travel,” he said.

Miller hobbled off ten minutes into Cardiff’s 2-1 defeat against Hull on Saturday and Mackay explained that his “groin had gone”, adding: “We’ll send him up but I’d be surprised if he isn’t back down here for treatment before the week is out.”

Miller is understood to have arrived the Scottish base in Renfrewshire yesterday. Most players will gather at the Mar Hall hotel today, with the squad scheduled to fly to Switzerland on Thursday. David Goodwillie, Craig Mackail-Smith and Steven Naismith are presently Levein’s other options in attack, although in Miller’s absence he would add another striker to the squad.