Euro 2024: Growing injury concerns amongst Scotland squad ahead of announcement

Steve Clarke will announce a 28-man Scotland squad on Wednesday - and will have until June 6 to make any changes and cut it down to 26 players.

The Tartan Army will be travelling to their second consecutive Euros competition after a blistering qualifying campaign, highlighted by a phenomenal 2-0 win over Spain in March 2023.

Unfortunately, hopes for a standout Euros performance have been hindered by growing injury concerns plaguing the first-team squad.

Bologna standout Lewis Ferguson will likely miss out on the party in Germany after the Serie A midfielder injured his anterior cruciate ligament earlier this month.

The midfield positions are still a strong area for the determined nation, with plenty of options such as fans favourite John McGinn, Callum McGregor and youngster Billy Gilmour still in fine form ahead of the summer competition.

However, the right-back positions are of growing concern to the Tartan Army supporters.

Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson are both suffering with long-term injuries and are set to miss out next month.

Assistant manager John Carver put any hopes of the trio recovering in time to bed in a statement to STV, saying: "It's three big players for us and three players who have done extremely well for us in the qualifiers and in recent times.

"The good thing is they are three young lads who hopefully have World Cups and Euros to come in the future, so we won't forget about them."

The vacancies at right-back create real problems for the Tartan Army with a double blow leaving Celtic’s Anthony Ralston as the only right-sided wing-back remaining who was in the squad for last month's defeats against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland.

Clarke and Carver may call on Ross McCrorie to fill the gap on the right side. The Bristol City player floats between the right side and defensive midfield positions so will likely be expected to have the expertise needed to fill the growing void in the back line.

Possible Initial Squad

While a final 26-man line-up has to be confirmed by the beginning of June, Clarke has room for experimentation ahead of Wednesday's initial announcement.

This may leave room for a couple of shock call-ups as the Scotland manager will likely continue to pull on youngsters to emulate the success achieved through the qualifying campaign.

Below is a predicted 28-man squad to be announced on Wednesday.

Goalkeepers: Angus Gunn (Norwich), Zander Clark (Hearts), Craig Gordon (Hearts)

Defenders: Liam Cooper (Leeds), Grant Hanley (Norwich), Jack Hendry (Al-Ettifaq), Scott McKenna (Copenhagen), Ross McCrorie (Bristol City), Liam Palmer (Sheffield Wednesday) Ryan Porteous (Watford), Greg Taylor (Celtic), Anthony Ralston (Celtic), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), Kieran Tierney (Real Sociedad), John Souttar (Rangers)

Midfielders: Stuart Armstrong (Southampton), Ryan Christie (Bournemouth), James Forrest (Celtic), Billy Gilmour (Brighton), Ryan Jack (Rangers), John McGinn (Aston Villa), Callum McGregor (Celtic), Kenny McLean (Norwich), Scott McTominay (Manchester United)

Forwards: Che Adams (Southampton), Lyndon Dykes (Queens Park Rangers), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts), Ben Doak (Liverpool).

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