Scotland head coach Steve Clarke has handed Kieron Bowie a first call-up as he casts his net wider in a bid to increase his player pool and ensure competition for places.
Hibernian forward Bowie and West Ham midfielder Andy Irving are among seven uncapped players in Clarke’s squad for friendlies against Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Josh Doig, fresh from winning a Serie B title with Sassuolo, Rangers midfielder Connor Barron and 18-year-old Motherwell midfielder Lennon Miller are also looking for their debuts when Iceland visit Hampden on June 6.
Norwich City goalkeeper Angus Gunn returns from injury, with the uncapped Robby McCrorie and Cieran Slicker also vying for the gloves.
Clarke also selected Sturm Graz right back Max Johnston, Hearts forward James Wilson and Ipswich Town striker George Hirst, who have four caps between them.
Bowie, 22, is the only newcomer in the squad after netting six goals in 22 appearances for Hibernian.
“He’s had a good season, injury affected at certain times, but Kieron’s one that I’ve always had my eye on from the Under-21s,” Clarke said. “Any time I watched the 21s, he always stood out. Big, physical, strong, good attributes to his game.
“You’ve obviously got people like Lawrence Shankland, Kevin Nisbet, who I know what they can bring to the squad or what they can give to me. We just need to have a look at something a little bit different, see if we can expand the pool of players.
“I keep talking about trying to get a bigger overall pool of players that we can select from. These games are probably a chance to have a look at one or two.
“You’re looking for somebody to catch your eye. You want competition between them.
“That’s why sometimes you bring in some of the younger boys and the older boys are suddenly looking over their shoulder, thinking ‘aye, aye, he’s thinking of something different’. It keeps them on their toes as well.”
Clarke also signalled he would experiment with formations after reverting to a back four after the Euro 2024 disappointment.
“We’re pretty set our my ways, or I’m pretty set in my ways, as everyone keeps telling me,” he said.
“We started with back four and realised you’ve got to transition to a back five.
“I tried my best to make Scott McTominay a centre half and eventually decided he was quite good at attacking midfield as well. Going back to a back four in the Nations League games worked well for us.
“Hopefully there will be two systems we can use. Maybe across the two games I’ll use both systems and see and decide how we approach the World Cup games in the autumn.
“But we also want to try and improve our record in friendlies because it’s not very good.”
Gunn makes a welcome return from injury after Craig Gordon, Liam Kelly and Zander Clark all experiencing fitness issues. But Clarke admits they are “a little bit light in the goalkeeping department”.
“Robbie McCrorie has had a little bit of and in-and-out season. Cieran Slicker’s not playing regular football,” he added. “It’s an area of the pitch that does concern me. We do need to find one or two goalkeepers.”
Scotland squad
For matches against Iceland at Hampden on June 6 and Liechtenstein in Vaduz on June 9.
Goalkeepers A Gunn (Norwich), C Slicker (Ipswich), R McCrorie (Kilmarnock). Defenders J Doig (Sassuolo), G Hanley (Birmingham), J Hendry (Al-Ettifaq), M Johnston (Sturm Graz), S McKenna (Las Palmas), N Patterson (Everton), A Ralston (Celtic), A Robertson (Liverpool), J Souttar (Rangers), K Tierney (Arsenal). Midfielders C Barron (Rangers), L Ferguson (Bologna), B Gilmour (Napoli), A Irving (West Ham), J McGinn (Aston Villa), S McTominay (Napoli), L Miller (Motherwell). Strikers C Adams (Torino), K Bowie (Hibernian), T Conway (Middlesbrough), J Wilson (Hearts), G Hirst (Ipswich).
