Scotland Men's Football Team

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Former Liverpool midfielder Ray Houghton says he opted to represent the Republic of Ireland because he was "never asked" to play for Scotland after a trial that "didn't go very well".

Glasgow-born Houghton, who won 72 caps for Ireland from 1986-97, had a trial as a teenager when Andy Roxburgh was Scotland boss.

Speaking on the Sacked in the Morning podcast, he said: "I've got to be honest with you, it didn't go very well.

"The manager, a certain Mr Andy Roxburgh, didn't take to the lads from England, to be honest with you.

"There were I think it was five or six, there were two or three lads from Middlesbrough, one from Millwall, a striker, and myself. And he didn't have a clue where we played.

"We were playing in a small game at Largs in the indoor, five-a-side thing. And he said, 'Right, you Anglos get a team together.' So he didn't really endear us to being there.

"And I didn't do particularly well. I did all right. He didn't even know where I played. He just said to me, well, at the last game, go and play on the wing.

"I said, I play in the middle. He went, 'Just go and play on the wing.'

"I did meet him subsequently at Anfield, at the training ground. He said, 'Why didn't you come and play for Scotland?'. I said, 'One, I was never asked. No one ever asked me. You can't go somewhere you are never asked to go.'

"And I said, 'By the way, when I was under 18 and you were the manager, you weren't very engaging towards us'. He was a lovely fellow, I got on great with Andy after that."

Swedish icon Zlatan Ibrahimovic will spearhead the efforts of AC Milan as they to try to sign Bologna midfielder Lewis Ferguson in January, despite the Scotland international signing a new contract extension just last month. (MilanLive.it via Daily Record, external)

Napoli sporting director Giovanni Manna was "surprised" when opening transfer talks with Manchester United for Scott McTominay after being told the Scotland midfielder was "not an essential player" at Old Trafford. (Tuttomercatoweb, external - in Italian)

Read the rest of Wednesday's Scottish gossip.

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Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay, 27, scored the only goal as Serie A leaders Napoli beat Torino on Sunday, getting the better of international team-mate Che Adams in the hosts' line-up. (Sun), external

Read Monday's Scottish gossip

A Fifa rule change means Scotland could be drawn in a group of five instead of four and could now face England and Wales in the World Cup qualifying draw. (Scottish Sun On Sunday), external

Arsenal fans who managed to get #WeWantTierney trending on social media after Scotland defender Kieran's return from injury were left disappointed when Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta instead sent on Oleksandr Zinchenko as a replacement for Riccardo Calafiori during their 5-2 trouncing of West Ham United. (Sunday Mail), external

A £2m mansion bought by former Celtic and Scotland midfielder and now Ayr United manager Scott Brown was once owned by former Rangers owner David Murray. (Scottish Sun On Sunday), external

Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Scotland defender Scott McKenna helped Las Palmas to a shock 2-1 La Liga victory over league-leaders Barcelona.

Former Barca striker Sandro fired a low effort across goal to put Las Palmas in front, before Barca captain Raphinha equalised for the hosts with an unstoppable low drive.

Wolves loanee Fabio Silva scored the winner with his fifth league goal of the campaign, slotting into the bottom corner after latching on to Javi Munoz's superb pass.

The result means Las Palmas climb to 14th in the league, while Real Madrid will cut Barcelona's lead at the top to a point if they beat Getafe on Sunday.

Scotland striker Ross Stewart's injury comeback has been further delayed after Southampton head coach Russell Martin confirmed the 28-year-old had suffered another setback. (The Scotsman), external

Read Saturday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Former Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough has urged Steve Clarke to make Ben Doak a regular member of the national side.

The Liverpool winger, on loan at Middlesbrough, has shone in Scotland's recent Nations League fixtures.

The 19-year-old provided the assist for the Scots' first goal in their 2-1 win against Poland - a result that secured Steve Clarke's side a Nations League A play-off spot.

"A winger is always exciting and it doesn't matter who it is, somebody's taking on somebody," Rough told the BBC's Sacked in the Morning podcast.

"We had James Forrest there who I thought, at the height of the Euros, would have been a star. But I think Doak definitely is and I think we've got to start playing him.

"I know the manager's saying we should protect him and I think that's quite right but when I went to Georgia there was a guy at 16 playing, there's a guy at another country is 18. If they're good enough just play them."

Aston Villa and Scotland midfielder John McGinn is being hounded by friends and family for tickets for Celtic's Champions League visit to Villa Park later this season. (Sun), external

McGinn admits reports that a transfer to Celtic fell through before he joined Aston Villa in 2018 annoy him, but the 30-year-old adopts a "never say never" approach to joining his boyhood club sometime in the future. (Scottish Football Social Club), external

Rangers are edging closer to the signing of Hearts and Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland, who is out of contract next summer, in the January transfer window, with a possible cut-price deal on the cards. (Football Insider), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish gossip

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Scotland winger Ben Doak's performances have made him a marked man, says his Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick. (Herald - subscription), external

Former Inter Milan, Juventus and Lazio player Hernanes praises Napoli and Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay, 27, describing him as "elegant". (Sun), external

McTominay helped Serie A leaders Napoli beat Roma 1-0 on Sunday but fellow Scotland midfielder Billy Gilmour was left on the bench. (Scotsman - subscription), external

Read Monday's Scottish gossip

We asked for your thoughts after Scotland were drawn against Greece for their two-legged Nations League play-off.

Here's what you had to say:

John: A tie that could have been easier - or more difficult resulted in mixed blessings. Greece performed well in their league fixtures, but if the Scots maintain a solid defence in the first leg it should be possible to overcome them.

Billy: We did very well against Poland, now we just need to do the same against Greece!

Doug: Greece have improved a lot in recent years but have been absent from tournament football for over a decade now. They lost to Georgia in their previous play-off and Scotland should be confident of getting a result over the two legs. Home advantage in the return game favours us I feel.

Amy: We're at a stage now where teams, even ones like Greece, should be fearing us and not the other way around. It'll be tough, but it's not scary or insurmountable. They were wide open against England and we'd exploit that. Confident of going through with Steve Clarke at the helm.

Scott: Scotland are more than capable of beating these guys home and away.

Angus: Greece will be difficult, having pulled off a win at Wembley, albeit under awful circumstances. But out of all the options, it's the best one.

Scotland must beat Greece in a two-legged play-off in March if they are remain in the top tier of the Nations League.

The nations have only met twice before, each picking up a 1-0 win home apiece in qualifying for Euro 96.

Having finished third in Nations League Group A1 this year, Scotland are seeking to retain their top-flight status while Greece are eyeing promotion after coming second to England on goal difference in Group B2.

The Greeks won five of their six group games - including a 2-1 victory at Wembley - and their only defeats in the past two years have come against England, France, Germany and the Netherlands.

What do you make of Scotland's chances? Can they continue the momentum of their strong finish to the group by seeing off the Greeks to remain among Europe's powerhouses?

Share your thoughts, external

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Scotland's John McGinn used the disappointment of not starting against Croatia to drive him on to deliver an "outstanding" display in Poland, says brother Stephen.

The Aston Villa captain returned from injury last month but was named among the substitutes for Friday's Nations League game at Hampden.

Off the bench, the talismanic midfielder came on to score a late winner before netting the opener in the dramatic victory in Warsaw.

The goals took McGinn's Scotland tally to 20, meaning he now ranks in the top five scorers in the men's national team's history.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, brother Stephen said: "One of the biggest things that happens to John when he gets a setback is he comes back stronger than ever.

"I know how disappointed he was not to be starting on Friday night. In football, you don't have any given right to start a game, but it can just light a fire up.

"I think it was his best performance in Poland. I thought he was outstanding. That's the pressure that comes with being super John McGinn, it's nice to see that back."

Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell says midfielder Lennon Miller, 18, will not have had his head turned by fellow teenager Ben Doak's recent impact with Scotland. (Record), external

Miller will be called up to the Scotland squad soon, says Motherwell team-mate and former national right-back Stephen O'Donnell, 32. (Herald - subscription), external

Mark McKenna, a member of Scotland's backroom team, has joined Raith Rovers as an analyst and coach. (Courier - subscription), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish gossip

Jane Lewis and Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland

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Few who watched Scotland take on Finland in their final friendly before Euro 2024 would have thought Craig Gordon would be one of the stars in the Nations League campaign.

The veteran goalkeeper, who had been omitted from the Euros squad, came off the bench at Hampden for his 75th cap and what seemed to be his Scotland swansong.

But Gordon has made a career out of defying the odds.

He always said he'd fight his way back into Steve Clarke's thoughts, and while injury to Angus Gunn opened the door, he has flourished since reclaiming the starting spot.

Some big saves in Scotland's last-gasp win over Poland Warsaw ensured a relegation play-off come March, but will the then 42-year-old Gordon be game?

"I think I'm just quite lucky, the Hearts keeper said. "Let's see if I can still be here in March at 42 to have another couple of games, and then hopefully try and stay at this level.

"I still have the motivation of course, that never goes away, and just as long as I can keep my body in good shape then I give myself an opportunity.

"It's brilliant that I'm still at this level, and hopefully we can stay in Group A which would be a huge achievement. I'd love to try and still be part of it.

"There's a lot of hard work to be done between now and March to stay at this level and make sure that I'm fit enough to be able to do that."

Gordon's performance in Warsaw was all the more impressive considering he felt ill in the build-up.

"Yeah I was struggling, even in the warm-up," he added.

"But I was determined to give it go a go. It was a struggle but I managed to get through it. I don't really know how, I think just when you get out there, instinct takes over and you just play the game."

How do you sum that one up then, Tartan Army?

We asked you to give it your best shot and send us your views on Scotland's last-gasp win over Poland in Warsaw.

Here's what some of you said:

Steven: Ben Doak is exactly the type of player we have been craving for years. Years ahead of him and a focal point for us to build future teams around. Bring on the qualifiers.

Jim: What a game of football. Both teams up for it. It had everything. Great goalkeeping, defending and attacking. One end to another. The kind of game Scotland loves. Can't pick out one player because there were so many on a game. You did your country proud, Scotland.

David: Superb play from Scotland. Classy, gritty, determined - what a super team performance. Only thing left to say is... a knighthood for Stevie Clarke, please!

Alex: I genuinely believed that there was no better man for the job than Clarke to turn things around after the Euros. His whole persona is perfect for the Scotland job in facing the media and possible fan backlash. His thick skin to us and obvious relationship with the players is spot on.

Stephen: Another performance deserving of praise, to the players and coaches. These performances are the best from a Scotland squad in decades. The criticisms aimed at the defence, throughout the campaign, have now surely been shown to be unfounded. Doak, Billy Gilmour, John McGinn and John Souttar are the outstanding players of recent games.

Reece: I thought they really deserved the win. The best I've seen them play in a while.

Graham: A fantastic campaign from Clarke and the squad. Competing in every game and getting deserved results to get a play-off. Clarke's a top manager and we need some realism from the press who continuously get too high or too low.

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland

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Lennon Miller might be after a word with his dad.

Lee Miller has spent a lot of time lately, rightly, gushing over his son's brilliance, but now it is the turn of a different talented teenager.

Lennon Miller and Ben Doak have come through the various Scotland youth levels together, so Lee has had a front row seat to the winger's excellence.

While the excitement has long been there from the Tartan Army, the evidence has now been delivered on the international stage from 19-year-old Doak.

A shining star among a string of superb Scotland performances, the Liverpool player, on loan at Middlesbrough, made this representing your country malarkey look easy.

Lee, though, has long known it's been a matter of when, not if, Doak would don the dark blue for the first team.

"I've watched him for a good few years now and he is the best I've seen at dribbling and running with the ball," the former Scotland striker said on the BBC's Scottish football podcast.

"He's exciting, he's got a complete no fear mindset of who he plays against. You get the same Ben Doak each time, he just wants to attack and go.

"That kind of breeds confidence throughout the full team, too. I think if you've got a player that can carry the ball like that, you want to give them it constantly.

"Then other players just up their game a wee bit more. I think there was a real control and quality in Scotland last night."

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