Just after midday on Tuesday the Scotland manager strode into Hampden with the same no-nonsense energy that has become his trademark. There was none of the showmanship you might expect from a World Cup squad unveiling. Clarke lobbed the squad list on the table, cupped his ears to the room and, in a rare theatrical moment, joked 'America, here we come' — but the mood was resolutely low-key. The Scottish FA tried to sprinkle a bit of drama online, but Clarke didn't play along. This was the manager being true to form: steady, predictable and uninterested in fanfare.
That predictability was obvious long before names were read out. Clarke has said the squad was largely settled in his head for weeks, and his selections reflect a deep loyalty to players he knows well. That loyalty explains why several in-form options were always unlikely to force their way in: Oli McBurnie, Oliver Burke, Kieron Bowie and others simply don't fit the manager's template.
There were a few talking points. Findlay Curtis, the 19-year-old Rangers winger who impressed on loan at Kilmarnock, earned a place after steady progress. Ross Stewart, whose time with Scotland has often been interrupted by injury and omis
