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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Ryan McGinlay

Steve Clarke dismisses Haiti starting eleven 'fixation' after win vs Bolivia

Steve Clarke (Image: Shutterstock)

Steve Clarke has praised his side's efforts in their final pre-World Cup warm-up against Bolivia, insisting that his starting line-up for Haiti next week is not yet set in stone.

The Scotland manager made half a dozen changes to his side for the match against the South Americans, where they ran out 4-0 winners thanks to first-half goals from Lawrence Shankland and Scott McTominay, as well as a Che Adams brace.

"I pretty much got everything that we could ask for, really," Clarke told BBC Scotland post-match. "No injuries, performance, and obviously a good result as well. Another four goals, which is good.

"We’ve spoken a lot this week about trying to be a little bit more clinical higher up the pitch and, yeah, it was nice. The front two were good, but, to be fair, the whole team was good in the first half, with a lot of good contributions.

"Ben Gannon-Doak was excellent off the right, and did what he does. But yeah, the two strikers complemented each other well, worked really well.


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"Me being me, I was really happy with the defensive work they did, the way they dropped down, kept the team compact, and didn't allow Bolivia to play through us."

On if he has decided on next week's line-up, Clarke continued, "No, because I’ve got some decisions to make. Some players played today that I liked. There’s obviously some players on the bench that I liked that have come into the game.

"The starting eleven becomes a fixation for everybody. It’s not a tournament for a starting eleven; it’s a tournament probably for your finishing eleven.

"We’ve waited a long time for this. The build-up's been great, everything about it's been great. The only thing I have to keep reminding myself, because I know what I’m like, is try and enjoy some of the moments.

"I probably won’t enjoy all the moments, but I’m going to try and remember some of the moments."

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