Steve Clarke has slapped a gag on all talk of Scotland having a play-off place in the bag as plots a way to stun Spain at Hampden.
The Scotland boss has shelved the fact that his team already has the safety net of a play-off through their Nations League heroics and is adamant that it has not been mentioned in the camp that is fully focused on qualifying for the Euros by the traditional route. Cyprus were beaten on Saturday and the Spanish big guns are in town on match night two in front of a sell-out Hampden crowd that has seen enough to believe that an upset is possible.
Clarke wants nothing but a positive mindset from his men and a steadfast belief that they are good enough to emerge from Group A with a place at the Euros earned without the need for that play-off. And he is convinced that his team is good enough to shock Spain under the lights at the National Stadium.
“We have spent the last couple of days talking about positive mentality going into the game," said Clarke, who watched Spain match Scotland's weekend result with a 3-0 win over Norway on Saturday night. "If you don’t believe you can get anything then you don’t get anything.
"So we have to believe we can get something from the game. I have carried that mentality right through my career."
Asked if having the play-off sitting on the back burner was a re-assurance, the former Kilmarnock manager's response was bullish. "What play off?" he asked. "We want to qualify direct, that’s my answer to the question.
"We do not speak about the play off, I have not spoken to the players about the play off, I have not spoken about it. I just want to go through the group, that’s the mentality so we have to go with that mentality.
"I know what you are saying – it gives you the freedom to go and play because if you mess up….but there’s no point thinking about the play offs. It does not take any pressure off this game because we want to qualify out of the group stage."
The Scotland manager admits he can't wait to take on a nation of Spain's stature. He will make at least one change to the team that beat Cyprus, with Lyndon Dykes coming in for the injured Che Adams.
But no matter who starts, he insisted the players who come off the bench will play just as big a role in deciding the outcome. He added: "One of the strengths I see in the group is the strength of the squad.
"So when you are turning around you are looking at your bench… we made one or two little changes to the team on 65 or 70 minutes (on Saturday). That was just to give us more energy on the pitch. But they were good players we were bringing on.
"‘Obviously we will start Dykesy in this game, that’s not a secret. But Scott McTominay did okay when he came on, Ryan Christie gave us energy.
"But before they went out I thought Ryan Jack did a really good job for the team. For me Ryan Jack is a player for a coach, e does his job for the team, he maybe doesn’t stand out all the time, but I like Ryan as a player.
"Stuart Armstrong was also very good before he went off. But you just feel towards the end of the game that you are just looking for a bit more zip and Christie brought that.
"So everyone is available, everyone is ready to play. There might be one or two tweaks in the team, but there might not be."
