Stats the way to do it for Levein

WHEN it comes to Scotland, Craig Levein is a positive man. Nothing that has happened in the past week has changed that. But the national boss is honest enough to concede that while there has been improvement in his squads over the past 18 months, his players have not yet reached a stage where they can go into any game fully confident of emerging with a win.

Recent matches do not inject in them a rush of certain superiority; the fact there has been no participation in major finals since 1998 underlines the frailties. But having seen the current players evolve and improve since he took over more than 18 months ago, he does believe they now have a better chance of bettering opponents than at any time during his tenure.

“I expect good teams to come to Hampden and have a go at us. We are not in a position yet where I could be saying that the players are really confident about taking points from anybody because we haven’t done it. That has to be understood. This is a work in progress.”

But the fact remains that with three minutes of the Czech Republic game remaining, his team was in a winning position. “You can’t get away from that fact. That winning position wasn’t altered by a normal course of events, it was altered by what the referee did.

“I am not happy with the result, but I am happy with the application of the players, the good football we have played in spells over the two matches and the alteration from the style of play that we have been trying to implement in the last year or so. I can see signs of improvement.”

A footballing missionary, he knows that some people do not share his faith and is aware there are those who need some tangible proof. “I am constantly talking to players about getting better individually and getting better as a team, but the statistics prove that we are getting better. There have been 14 games since I have been here and in my opinion we didn’t really start improving until after the Spain game; that was the first signs of recovery.

“In those 14 games we have won seven matches, lost five and drawn two. If you go back to the previous 14 matches we won three, drew three and lost eight. In the previous 14 matches we scored eight goals and we lost 21. In the last 14 matches we have scored 19 and lost 15. It is important that people understand we are getting better.”

Long enough of tooth to recognise that statistics can be slanted to suit virtually any cause, he says the greatest proof is in the viewing. Having capped around 50 players in his 14 games, he has put many old-timers out to grass and tried out and sidelined some others while settling on a squad he hopes can take him where he wants to go now, while also providing the foundation for the future.

“I can see improvements in the squad, in the unity of the team and the different calibre of player we are trying to introduce and the different style of football we are trying to play, and I do talk about that on a regular basis, but I think it’s important every now and then to say here’s some evidence so the players and others can understand that we really are heading in the right direction. Ultimately we are only trying to do one thing and that is qualify for a tournament. That’s what we are trying to do.”

The quest for a place at the Euro 2012 table became more forlorn in the wake of last Saturday’s draw at Hampden, the victory over Lithuania three days later keeping the dream alive, but only just.

The pressure in those must-win matches was intense and even those used to week-to-week demands at club level discovered new realms of expectation. Some had been there before and those who hadn’t used what they has learned to help them bounce back on Tuesday.

“The three players whom I have considered to be our best players in recent games have been Charlie Adam, James Morrison and Steven Naismith and I felt that game did them more good than anything else.

“That experience they had on Saturday gave them another opportunity to see what is required in a pressure situation like that.

“But it is no coincidence that Kenny Miller, Scott Brown, Darren Fletcher and Gary Caldwell were our best players. I’d love to be able to give some of our players 20 caps and put them in a position where that game on Saturday is something where they know what to expect.”

He has tried to blood the youngsters, though. Barry Bannan and David Goodwillie were the latest fledgling caps to be given a starting role. Like Danny Wilson, Grant Hanley and James Forrest before them, they have been in recent squads for a reason. “We have introduced new players as the confidence has grown and I wouldn’t have introduced new players if I didn’t feel that we were ready.”

Bedding them into recent squads and giving them the opportunity to suss out what being a Scotland player means is a tactic which helped the transition when circumstances dictated that Bannan and Goodwillie replace the more experienced Brown and Miller.

“For me, experience is caps. How many caps you have, how many times you have been in a pressure situation for your country and these things are important.”

Aided by the old guard, the kids have picked up the gauntlet and while results still need to favour Scotland next month to offer the chance of a play-off spot, the signs of improvement are there. If you don’t believe, the evidence is there in the stats.