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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Gabriel McKay

Steve Clarke sends defiant Scotland message as he reveals surprise change to starting XI for San Marino

Scotland manager Steve Clarke doesn't expect a big attendance at Hampden Park tomorrow, but knows his side would have to beat San Marino even if the stadium is empty.

Apathy surrounds the national team after four defeats in a row, the most recent a 4-0 battering at the hands of Russia on Friday night.

Tomorrow Scotland are back in action against a team ranked as the worst in the world, and there is not expected to be a big crowd at Hampden .

Clarke insisted: "If the stadium is empty, we still have to win the game.

"We are appreciative of everybody who comes to watch us, so if there is a small number there, we'll still be appreciative of them.

"What we need to do is get a few wins and make sure the stadium is full come March.

"The first objective is always to win the game and, if we win the game well, even better.

"We need to stick together and we have to turn the corner.

(SNS Group)

"What's gone is gone. We have to learn from it. In adversity you sometimes learn more about people.

"Footballers are a resilient breed. They are used to the highs and lows. We've had the low, now it's time to look forward to a few highs.

"We can keep looking back and beating ourselves up, which we're quite good at in this country, or we can say everything that we want to achieve is still in front of us.

"If you look at the possibilities, we have to win the next three games to finish third in the group. If we do that, we'll get the positivity back going into the ( Nations League ) play-off games in March. We still have everything to play for."

Clarke also revealed he'll make a change to his starting XI, with goalkeeper David Marshall to be dropped for Jon McLaughlin.

"It was a pre-planned change. I need a second goalkeeper with more caps, more experience to play."

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