{"id":200906,"date":"2026-06-10T06:53:34","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T06:53:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2026\/06\/10\/different-clarke-bids-to-smash-scotlands-glass-ceiling\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T06:53:34","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T06:53:34","slug":"different-clarke-bids-to-smash-scotlands-glass-ceiling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2026\/06\/10\/different-clarke-bids-to-smash-scotlands-glass-ceiling\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Different’ Clarke bids to smash Scotland’s glass ceiling"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

“This time, it’s a different Steve Clarke.”<\/b><\/p>\n

The Scotland boss feels like a new man – and he is sensing a fresh wave of optimism as he leads his team into a third major tournament.<\/p>\n

The 62-year-old ended a finals absence of more than two decades when he guided the men’s national side to the Covid-impacted Euro 2020.<\/p>\n

Play-off heartache in their quest to qualify for the 2022 World Cup was followed by the Scots roaring their way to Euro 2024.<\/p>\n

“I’ve not really enjoyed the previous two tournaments if I’m being honest,” Clarke tells BBC Scotland in a candid interview.<\/p>\n

So why? Reduced crowds, two group games at Hampden and another at Wembley “didn’t give the feel of a tournament” at Euro 2020, he says.<\/p>\n

On their showing in Germany two years ago, he adds: “We let ourselves down. We didn’t play as well as we should have done and I probably didn’t make the decisions that I should have.”<\/p>\n

Clarke is convinced he and his players have learned from those experiences and are now in a position to “break that glass ceiling” by progressing to a historic knockout tie.<\/p>\n

“What we’ve achieved up to now is great,” he says. “Let’s see if we can achieve a little bit more.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Clarke points out that a high number of his squad have tournament experience. A chunk of them have two tournaments’ worth.<\/p>\n

“Now we have to show that tournament experience in a tournament,” he says.<\/p>\n

That starts on Sunday (02:00 BST) when a World Cup group opener against Haiti officially ends Scotland’s 28-year absence from football’s grandest stage.<\/p>\n

Even after the astonishing qualification-clinching victory against Denmark in November, there was a shift in mood following underwhelming displays in back-to-back friendly defeats against Japan and Ivory Coast.<\/p>\n

That intensified somewhat when news broke that Clarke had penned a new four-year deal at the end of last month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But the vibe around the national team has changed, with Clarke notably positive after warming up for the tournament with a 4-1 win over 10-man Curacao before smashing Bolivia 4-0.<\/p>\n

That positivity will still amount to cautious optimism for most of the Tartan Army. Clarke acknowledges these positive vibes are yet to be transferred to competitive football.<\/p>\n

There is no denying confidence is quietly bubbling away, though. The Scotland boss referenced it himself but stressed his players are not “over-confident”.<\/p>\n

“They understand the challenges ahead and when they come, we’ll be ready for them,” he adds.<\/p>\n

“I’m trying to soak it up. I wanted to go to a World Cup as a player. I didn’t manage to do that. It’s taken me 62 years to achieve what I wanted to achieve, so I’m going to try to enjoy it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Two summers ago, Scotland’s Euros opener proved to be one of their biggest letdowns under Clarke – a 5-1 loss to hosts Germany.<\/p>\n

“We have to remember how bad that felt,” the head coach says.<\/p>\n

Clarke believes that crushing defeat put Scotland “on the back foot” for the remainder of their tournament, which again ended at the group stage.<\/p>\n

“This time, we have to make sure we start on the front foot,” he insists.<\/p>\n

On the evidence of the Scots’ warm-up displays, there are signs they can achieve that against a similarly-ranked nation this weekend.<\/p>\n

The recent adoption of an aggressive 4-4-2 shape with two strikers playing centrally and direct winger Ben Doak operating off the right feeds into the idea of a “different Steve Clarke”, although he suggested he has been unfairly “tagged with a label”.<\/p>\n

“I think I’ve shown consistently throughout my time that I’m prepared to try something different,” says Clarke, who feels he has his best depth across a Scotland squad.<\/p>\n

“Going into this tournament, the something different was to think about maybe playing 4-4-2 to see how it worked.<\/p>\n

“What people don’t understand is when you’re at a club you can work on a system for a long period of time and have a lot of training sessions on it. When you’re in an international camp you don’t have that.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Away from the relentless preparation in the Charlotte sun, the Scotland boss “can’t wait to see” his grandkids when the Clarke clan arrive in the US.<\/p>\n

The squad will be granted extended family time over the weekend in Boston, something that was not such a luxury in Germany two years ago.<\/p>\n

“I phoned back home a couple of days ago and [the family] are all absolutely buzzing, especially the little ones,” Clarke says.<\/p>\n

“It’s probably something we’ve learned from the last tournament. We played the game, you saw your family for 15-20 minutes, then we were away to the base and they were back to their hotel.<\/p>\n

“So, we decided this time we would try to incorporate a lot more family time so people can be around their loved ones, whether it’s a good result or a bad result.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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