Steve Clarke has insisted he has given Angus Gunn no guarantees he will be the new Scotland No.1 after persuading the Norwich City keeper to switch allegiances from England.
Gunn, whose dad Bryan Gunn was capped six times for Scotland, came through the English youth group ranks and had previously resisted chances to play for Scotland. But with the gloves up for grabs due to Craig Gordon’s long-term injury absence, the 27-year-old has been named alongside Hearts’ Zander Clark and Motherwell captain Liam Kelly in boss Clarke’s squad for this month’s Euro qualifying double header against Cyprus and Spain.
That trio don’t have a single cap between them and Gunn is expected to get the nod - although Clarke is adamant that all three will get the chance to impress in training before the Cyprus clash at Hampden on March 25. He said: “The keepers have a clean slate. None of them have got any caps.
"It’s a clear week into the first game, so they have to show me, John Carver and Chris Woods, the goalkeeping coach, what they can do and then we’ll make a choice.
“I don’t guarantee anyone a game. I did that once way back early in my managerial career and it was the wrong thing to do. I have never done it again.”
On Gunn’s situation, Clarke admitted that the Norwich keeper may well feel that his chance to break into the English full set-up has gone - hence the decision to switch to Scotland. And the Scotland gaffer insists he has no problem with that.
“Obviously when you lose your No 1 goalkeeper, who was the undisputed No 1, to a long-term injury I looked at the depth within the goalkeeping squad and there wasn’t a lot there,” he said. “So when I heard that Angus was receptive to changing nationality to play for Scotland like his dad did before him, I just thought it was an opportunity to go and speak to him.
“I drove to Norwich and we had a great conversation. Fortunately for us, he has decided to come and play for us. We just had an honest conversation about where his head was, what he was thinking.
"He was quite honest. He didn’t feel he was in a position to commit when he was asked before. He was born in England and wanted to see how it panned out. He’d been through the English FA system, which a lot of players have done.
“He probably thinks that playing for Scotland is his best chance to play international football. That’s a conversation I’ve had with other players and that’s just the reality of it.
“He has decided to come and play for us and it gives more options and more competition in that area, where I feel we are a little bit light. I’d still like to find a few more goalkeepers who can challenge for the position of No 1 for Scotland.”
While Gunn is a new addition to the squad, Celtic left back Greg Taylor’s omission came as a shock with the manager explaining that he was left out at the request of the Parkhead club as they try to manage an injury issue.
Clarke added: “I have had a chat with Greg. It is really a Celtic issue, more than for me to comment on. He is carrying a little injury. “He will probably benefit from a rest rather than coming away with the national team. Celtic should elaborate on that a little bit if you want to push that one.”
And Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland will be disappointed to miss out on the 23-man squad. Clarke explained: “Lawrence has been really good this season, he has had a good campaign. When I was looking at the forward department, Lawrence was right at the front of my mind.
“Probably the fact he has picked up a little injury might just have swayed me to go the other way. And obviously I have got Lyndon Dykes back. Che Adams and Lyndon have been my go-to strikers if you like and I am happy to have both of them in the squad.”
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