Pedro Martinez Losa is confident he can successfully lead Scotland through their upcoming play-offs and secure a place at next summer’s European Championship finals in Switzerland.
Scotland face a two-legged first-round tie against Hungary this month and if they progress, they will meet the winners of the tie between Montenegro and Finland.
The Scots came up short in their previous bid to qualify for a tournament under Martinez Losa when they lost to the Republic of Ireland in a 2023 World Cup play-off, but the Spaniard is optimistic about his side’s chances this time.
“Since the moment I decided to be here, I have received the responsibility to represent Scotland, to lead these players to the next level, and also to bring the national team to a major tournament,” he said after naming his squad for the Hungary matches.
“We had another opportunity before, which could have gone a different way, but now we are four games away from playing a major tournament, and I’m totally convinced that this group of players can achieve it.
“Obviously, there’s four games that have to be played, and we don’t know the outcome yet, but it would mean probably one of the highlights of my career in terms of football, in terms of transmitting all my knowledge, my experience to a group of players, and also to inspire a nation.
“I can’t wait to play at the Euros, because our conversations with the players were always, if we qualify, I think we can be a much better team. I think we are a team that continues to develop, and we could express well on the pitch, and we could compete at a good level. That’s the ultimate objective.”
Scotland will be without injured captain Rachel Corsie but Martinez Losa is delighted to have key due Caroline Weir and Emma Watson back in the squad after long-term injury lay-offs.
“We always discuss about how excited we were about the future of this team when you have the best players,” he said. “And respecting all the players, because obviously we look backwards to the campaign and all of them have made us arrive where we are now, which is unbeaten in 2024 and conceding only one goal in the campaign, but we are positive that the squad has more quality.
“Probably in the final third and offensive-wise, especially, we can be more productive. I think that talent can solve the final third problem, and players like Emma and Caroline are the ones who will be able to help us on that.”
