Away from the domestic football business for a bit, some people may have noticed that the Scotland squad for the upcoming international doubleheader was announced yesterday.
Manager, Steve Clarke announced his 25-man-squad to face Cyprus and England yesterday morning with the surprise exclusion of Celtic defender, Greg Taylor.
Taylor has 10 caps for Scotland and whilst he has the likes of Kieran Tierney and Andy Robertson to contend with, he has been involved in Steve Clarke’s set-up of late.
But now, he finds himself sitting this international break out. But the Scotland manager hasn’t completely closed the door on Taylor being called up for the September doubleheader.
Clarke said [The Scotsman], “If you notice, I’ve probably gone a little bit top-heavy with more forwards than I normally do because I want to go to Cyprus and win the game.
“So I’ve gone top heavy. But I always have good cover in the left-back area. Obviously, I’ve got Kieran (Tierney), Andy (Robertson) while Aaron Hickey can go there if required.
“I spoke to Greg, he’s fine. He’s not too far away from selection. If I pick up an injury in one of those defensive positions then he can be in the squad before we meet up.”
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That won’t be much of a consolation for the Celtic defender. Whilst his form this season has dipped, Taylor was a crucial part of the Celtic side that won a treble last season and in Scotland’s charge to winning their UEFA Nations League group.
Taylor earned caps in the matches against Armenia, Ireland and Ukraine (x2) in which he helped Scotland top the group.
But now, he’s back on the outside looking in as Steve Clarke looks to take Scotland one step closer to qualification for next year’s Euros 2024 with a win over Cyprus next month.
In other news, ‘Good news’: Journalist confirms Celtic’s seventh summer signing is imminent