In the past few
months Craig Levein has seemingly done as little as he can to endear himself to the
increasingly exasperated Scotland fans. Yesterday, however, suggested a change
of heart as Levein recalled Steven Fletcher to the national team set-up -
prompted no doubt by a lacklustre double-header at Hampden in September and the
seismic pressure placed upon him from nearly every football fan in the country.
Can Levein’s struggling bond with the Tartan Army be reconciled with the same
apparent ease as his personal relationship with Fletcher? I can’t see it.
In light of the
surprising squad list, the Scotland boss deserves no shortage of credit for
swallowing his pride and making the long overdue call to Scotland’s most
expensive export. As recently as May, he was quoted saying, with regards to a
recall, “There’s no going back on this. That’s it, finished. Done.”. It
certainly wouldn’t have been an easy U-turn to make.
Much of Levein’s criticism has been centred on
his stubborn nature and his ignorance of the most prolific Scottish striker of
his generation (Not to mention the infamous 4-6-0 formation in Prague). Levein
has realised, and quite rightly so, that his own bruised ego is a small price
to pay to have, arguably, our best attacking player back in the squad. The team
has been put before himself, for the first time in the last 12 months –
something which should have been the case since day one of his thus far
ill-fated tenure. Fletcher is not without blame, of course, despite the media’s
recent portrayal of him as our long awaited saviour.
A murmuring of a poor relationship with Kris
Commons adds extra focus to Levein’s man management skills and stubbornness depriving
Scotland of key players. Commons is debatably the in-form player in Scottish
football and, for my money, more than worthy of a squad place, at the bare
minimum. His creativity, vision and dexterity from set pieces seem impossible
to leave out, solely for footballing reasons.
My fear for
Levein is that yesterday may be a case of too little, too late. The time spent
without Fletcher has cemented the opinion that he is not the correct man for
the job in the minds of the bulk of the fan base. The forthcoming period, with Fletcher, will
prove troublesome regardless of results.
Fletcher is in a
win/win situation, similar to a goalkeeper at a penalty shootout. If he plays
and Scotland win, all success will be attributed to him. On the other hand, a
less successful international break will find Levein’s head in the noose and
Fletcher and Scotland’s underperformance a result of Levein’s dithering
approach to returning the Sunderland striker to the national setup.
There is more
pressure than ever on Levein to select Fletcher to spearhead an attack minded
side against Wales and Belgium - which may not be the most salubrious decision
in the second of the two fixtures, in Brussels against a formidable Belgian
opposition. The added scrutiny is not
something which will aid Levein’s quest for job security in the slightest.
The next few
months will most definitely be the most turbulent of Levein’s managerial
career. It may not even last so long if, Heaven forbid, Scotland fail to beat a
substandard Wales side. The familiar issue of disharmony and egos within the
squad could once again rear its ugly head. Levein is going to have to rely on a
significant amount of good fortune and patience in equal measures to get
through this with an ameliorated reputation.
The long awaited
return has put unprecedented levels of expectation on Steven Fletcher’s broad
shoulders. Fletcher is a very good footballer but he is not Messi nor is he a Messiah. The added pressure on a Fletcher inspired rescue
will, again, place culpability on Levein for allowing the feud to become so
prolonged.
Someone who will
be glad of the diverted media focus will be his namesake, Darren Fletcher,
who’s return to the national side is perhaps more significant to our qualification
hopes. With the form of Rhodes, the strike force looks refreshingly potent.
Steven Fletcher will of course increase this tenfold and provide a
mouth-watering list of striking options but, judging from the our qualification
campaign to date, the midfield is sorely in need of enhancement. The Manchester
United midfielder has been sorely missed and the timing of his return is
immaculate, given the underperformance of Charlie Adam and James Morrison.
It is not
premature to say that the next two fixtures will make or break our campaign;
anything less than 3 points out of 6 leaving Scotland with an almost
insurmountable task to qualify for Brazil in 2014 and end our international
exile at 18 years. With Levein and his Welsh counterpart, Chris Coleman,
fighting for their managerial lives and Fletcher’s current position in the
Scottish media not too dissimilar to Cristo Redentor in the World Cup host
nation’s most famous city, there will be no shortage of drama next Friday
evening in Cardiff.
Ultimately, we
could have a £20m strike force carrying the hopes of a nation, or Kenny Miller
playing up top on his own. Over to you, Mr. Levein. No pressure…
Darren Dalrymple
Twitter:
@DarrenDalrymple
