- Published17 minutes ago
Sebastien Pocognoli has been speaking to the media afternaming his Scotland squadfor the remaining Nations League fixtures against North Macedonia and Switzerland.
Here are the key lines from the news conference:
Pocognoli is pleased to have "plenty of experience" back with Scott McTominay, Che Adams and Kieran Tierney returning to a "young" squad: "The mix will be good and these players will also show the way for them."
On a first call-up for Rangers left-back James Penrice, the Scotland boss says: "We have a list of players that we select regarding the performance at their clubs, but also the style of play or the way that we want to play. We have some missing players around the left side. So, combined with his quality and what we are looking for on the pitch, it's a logical choice for me and it can be very useful for the system that we want to play and also I think he deserves it."
The Belgian has named a similar squad because he is seeking "continuity" as Scotland build towards the start of Euro qualifying.
Pocognoli was in regular contact with McTominay before and after the Napoli midfielder's heart surgery: "He's one of the captains so there's a special contact with them, but he's looking forward to come, to play for us, to play in a different way, on the pitch and he is very positive, so that's important."
The manager took "a lot of positives" from his first four games despite mixed results and says: "A new squad, new staff, a lot of new faces. Some strong decisions, some needed decisions."
He adds: "We did a lot of good things. I think we need a good result also to give something to the supporters and also just to give the confidence to the players that we are winning games. That's the main factor to qualify for a tournament."
While there will still be some "experimenting", he is seeking improvement from the team and knows the importance of securing wins, especially a first Hampden victory when North Macedonia visit.
Pocognoli is keen for young Scottish players to stay in the Premiership to enhance their development and help make the league stronger.
