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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Ben Banks

Motherwell star's Scotland exclusion explained as Steve Clarke points to 'ready' factor

Scotland head coach Steve Clarke says swapping out Motherwell goalkeeper Liam Kelly for St Johnstone's Zander Clark is a 'normal' switch.

The former Kilmarnock boss has named his squad to take on Moldova and Denmark in two crucial World Cup 2022 qualifiers this month.

Victory over Moldova would seal a play-off spot next March as Scotland bid to make the World Cup in Qatar next winter.

'Well vice-captain Kelly was named in September and October's international camps, but Saints goalkeeper Clark has been opted for this time around.

The Scotland head coach says the change is part of the plan to assess the nation's goalkeeping options. Hearts' Craig Gordon is currently number one.

Clarke told the SFA's in-house media: "We have one change in the goalkeeping department - I bring in Zander for Liam - is a normal change in my eyes.

"They are two goalkeepers looking to push Craig Gordon and Jon McLaughlin above them and it’s nice to have a look at both. We had both in the September.

"We had a look at Liam in the last camp and we'll take a look at Zander in this one. So it's a chance for us to have a look at all the goalkeepers who are around and ready.

"I keep talking about respect for the group. It’s a group of players that have done very well for their country recently so we try and follow in the same path."

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