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Strongest 11/McGregor/Ferguson conundrum


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8 minutes ago, allyo said:

Gunn

Porteous, Hendry, Tierney

Ralston, Gilmour, McGregor, Robertson

Mctominay, Adams, McGinn

 

Most likely starting line-up?

During the qualifying campaign Christie started more games than Gilmour and all of the 'big' games (Away to Norway, Home & Away to Spain). There is also a case for a fully fit Hanley to replace Hendry, but we don't know the fitness situation of Hanley. That in turn opens up the question of Hendry or Porteous on the right. Dykes might get the nod depending on how we intend to approach the game instead of Adams.

I'd say the definite starters assuming everyone in the 28 is fit are Gunn, Tierney, Robertson, McTominay, McGinn (5). Beyond that there is probably at least a little doubt and might depend on training, injuries and the match approach. The biggest question for me is if we will approach the game like we did against the Netherlands or like we did away to Spain. From there it's horses for courses.

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35 minutes ago, allyo said:

Gunn

Porteous, Hendry, Tierney

Ralston, Gilmour, McGregor, Robertson

Mctominay, Adams, McGinn

 

Most likely starting line-up?

For Germany?

------------Gunn-------------

----Porteous--Hendry--Tierney--

Ralston----------------Robertson

----Christie---------McGregor---

---McTominay-------McGinn-----

------------Dykes--------------

Although Gilmour may get the nod over Christie and a fully fit Hanley would replace Porteous in my opinion with Hendry shifting over. I doubt we have a full fit Hanley though.

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Posted (edited)
14 minutes ago, Skyline Drifter said:

For Germany?

------------Gunn-------------

----Porteous--Hendry--Tierney--

Ralston----------------Robertson

----Christie---------McGregor---

---McTominay-------McGinn-----

------------Dykes--------------

Although Gilmour may get the nod over Christie and a fully fit Hanley would replace Porteous in my opinion with Hendry shifting over. I doubt we have a full fit Hanley though.

I think that is the lineup he'll pick against Germany but with Christie and McTominay swapped. Personally I'd put Gilmour in instead of Christie but I'm happy with either.

Edited by TeeMan
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Yeah. So Glimoue/Christie and Dykes/Adams are probably the tactical choices. The other possible variations more down to form and fitness, with some of my 11 more secure than others

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9 minutes ago, craigkillie said:

I reckon McCrorie will end up starting the tournament at RWB on account of him being a much better player than Ralston.

Sincerely hope Clarke sees it this way too. McCrorie isn't some world beater but I do think he's a better player than Ralston by a decent margin. His athleticism alone could be fairly crucial. 

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10 minutes ago, craigkillie said:

I reckon McCrorie will end up starting the tournament at RWB on account of him being a much better player than Ralston.

Without necessarily disagreeing with that, why then has he not been picked ahead of Ralston before now? Appreciate he wasn't fit first half of the season but he wasn't called up in March either.

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30 minutes ago, Skyline Drifter said:

Without necessarily disagreeing with that, why then has he not been picked ahead of Ralston before now? Appreciate he wasn't fit first half of the season but he wasn't called up in March either.

Just timing and then loyalty. Ralston has done well in the Celtic team as an injury replacement. He was called up (Nov-21 camp) and Clarke must like what he's seen from him since then. 

I think he's a good player, but probably an even better professional. I'm not saying McCrorie isn't, but I think it was timing and circumstances that saw him get his foot in the door first and now Clarke trusts him.

 

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Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, craigkillie said:

I reckon McCrorie will end up starting the tournament at RWB on account of him being a much better player than Ralston.

There is no chance that Clarke doesn’t pick Ralston vs Germany.

ps. McCrorie only started 12 games for Bristol City this season.

Edited by Grangemouth Bairn
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16 minutes ago, Grangemouth Bairn said:

There is no chance that Clarke doesn’t pick Ralston vs Germany.


I don't see how you can possibly say there's no chance. Ralston wouldn't even be in the squad if everyone was fit, yes he has been established as third choice for a while, but it's hardly like he's some undroppable player. He hasn't played loads for Celtic this season, and I can very much see a scenario where McCrorie comes in fitter and sharper and does better in the friendlies and in training.

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7 minutes ago, craigkillie said:


I don't see how you can possibly say there's no chance. Ralston wouldn't even be in the squad if everyone was fit, yes he has been established as third choice for a while, but it's hardly like he's some undroppable player. He hasn't played loads for Celtic this season, and I can very much see a scenario where McCrorie comes in fitter and sharper and does better in the friendlies and in training.

I hope you are right. I’ll be very, very surprised if Ralston doesn’t start though.

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16 hours ago, allyo said:

Yeah. So Glimour/Christie and Dykes/Adams are probably the tactical choices. The other possible variations more down to form and fitness, with some of my 11 more secure than others

It's interesting to see how the midfield has changed over time. Gilmour and McGregor are an interesting combination. They were a midfield combination we used predominantly through the latter part of World Cup qualifying, but after the play-off defeat to Ukraine we've moved away from that. I don't know the exact reason for that, but at the moment it seems more likely than not it will be one or the other that start.

I think Gilmour can reach a higher peak than McGregor in any given match, but McGregor's performance levels are more stable over many games. The last camp was a good example of that in my view. Gilmour played both games, one performance was excellent and one performance wasn't. Gilmour is younger so it's normal.

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I think if the Germany game was next then Ralston gets the nod, but there is two friendlies to impress in and expect both will get equal enough time to do so.

In the few games, I have seen McCrorie this season at wing back, whilst he does get forward as he should, he can be very clunky and not an easy watch on the wing. Lacks the smoothness of a decent wing back. How much of that is coming back from a serious injury, and how much is the fact he is clearly more used to playing right back/centre back, I'm not sure.

That being said, he is really good defensively at wing back and that's definitely where his strength lies in that position. Off the ball, he is very decent at snuffing out opposition wingers, keeping his defensive duties and being more of a solid player in a back 5. Whether he gets the opportunity to really show that against Gibralter or Finland, I'm not sure.

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