Time for Gordon to restore faith of Tartan Army
HE has always made the remarkable seem commonplace. Even by his standards, however, Gordon Strachan has managed to do something quite incredible over the course of the summer.
Without taking charge of a single competitive match, with all of its demands to pick a starting XI and whip up some tactical master plan — maybe even make a couple of those ‘impact substitutions’ so beloved by armchair pundits — the Scotland manager has managed to knock a good 20 points off his credibility rating.
At the start of this international week, it is impossible to shake the air of disinterest — bordering on dislike — being exuded by many supporters of the national team.
For Strachan has given the impression, in recent months, of being far from enamoured with his day job. That may not be the case. It has been known for even the collective intuition of the entire Tartan Army to be wrong on occasion. But there are definitely days when he appears to consider the gig more trouble than it’s worth.
He doesn’t much like the quality of player he has to choose from, obviously. Hence his now-forgotten mission, in tandem with Brian McClair, to revolutionise the grassroots of the game. He has long since tired of offering even token justification for his selection.
To be honest, the very notion of having to explain himself to the ignorant masses is anathema to a man who, lest we ever forget, believes that anyone without the right footballing pedigree couldn’t possibly understand his logic. Yes, Gordon knows. You lot don’t.
Now, the fact that he can be spiky bordering on infuriating shouldn’t matter one iota. Even if the smart-Alec shtick works a lot better when you’re winning, any judgment is based entirely on the quality of his work. But finishing fourth in our Euro 2016 qualifying group can hardly be described as progress.
This perceived lack of love for Gordon, even if it is unlikely to bother him much, isn’t just a figment of the imagined Twitter-verse, incidentally. It’s coming from people we all know, fans who go to every game because they still refuse to give up on Scotland. Because it wouldn’t feel right sitting at home when ‘our boys’ are playing.
When they start travelling to Hampden — or Malta this weekend — with their dedication hanging by a thread, it’s a poor reflection on the leadership of the first XI.
Because if the diehards are disheartened, what of the casual fan who drifts in and out of devotion to the cause? They are easily distracted, this large demographic. Their heads are likely to be turned by the glitz and glamour of the Champions League. Or the nittygritty of their own club game.
Why, some have even started to get their kicks from sports other than football. Sure, the Olympics may be over. But Andy Murray challenging for the US Open starting today is bound to draw a little limelight away from Malta.
Murray has been in seven straight finals this season, three of those at Grand Slam events and one at the Olympic Games, and he is arguably the favourite to win in New York. Of all the new Scottish heroes who have risen in the space left by continued international football disappointments, the boy from Dunblane stands tallest.
Still, there will always be a residual affection for the national football team. We still care. We’re just tired. Tired of all the failure. Suffering from defeat fatigue. And wondering if it will ever end.
The odds are stacked heavily against a Scottish revival strong enough to guide us to the World Cup Finals in 2018.
Even finishing as runners-up in a group including England — who for all their problems, have become a relentless qualifying machine — might not be enough to earn a spot in the play-offs.
Would it be fair, then, to get rid of Gordon if he failed to achieve the near-impossible?
Well, he was hired to end the cycle of unqualified non-qualification. If he either isn’t willing to — or won’t be allowed to — use this campaign as an opportunity to build a team around the next generation, we can only judge him in such binary terms.
Malta away on Sunday night, then. In search of something truly astonishing. A performance, and a result, to restore the faith of a waning nation.