Anthony Ralston and the rest of the Tartan Army will be back on home soil at the earliest possible opportunity after failing to qualify from Group A. Scotland needed a victory against Hungary in their final group stage game to qualify as one of the best third-placed teams. However, the Scots failed to create any meaningful opportunities against the Hungarians in a game largely devoid of quality or attacking intent.
After months of hope and expectation, it was bitterly disappointing to see Scotland exit the tournament with such a whimper. Many fans and pundits alike have already been questioning the long-term future of head coach, Steve Clarke, who was culpable for failing to encourage a more attack-minded attitude against Hungary.
Ralston suffered the full force of the media glare
As for Celtic trio, Callum McGregor, Anthony Ralston and James Forrest, it’s been a huge learning experience for one player in particular. Full back, Ralston, was an ever-present in Clarke’s back line. However, the 25-year-old made a glaring and ultimately costly error which let in Xherdan Shaqiri to level against Switzerland with a wonder strike. Ralston’s weak back pass was seized upon by the veteran playmaker and, although he had plenty still to do, Shaqiri made it look easy to curl the ball into the top left corner.
Ralston ended up on the receiving end of plenty of criticism from fans and pundits after the Switzerland game. There was frustration that the Swiss were by no means better than Scotland on the day and, after Scott McTominay fired the Tartan Army in front, they should have gone on to claim all three points.
Unfortunately, the game ended in a 1-1 draw and Scotland couldn’t raise themselves for a last hurrah against Hungary. It leaves only one British nation carrying the hopes of the UK at the Euros for the knockout stages. Although England have been equally as underwhelming so far in the tournament, they remain one of the top three favourites to win the competition. Southgate’s men have drifted in the latest odds for Euros outright betting from 4.50 favourites to 5.50 joint-second favourites with hosts, Germany.
Scotland captain, Andy Robertson, was effusive in his praise for Ralston at the end of the Switzerland game. Robertson described his performance as “unbelievable” after the error, acknowledging his mental fortitude to come back and shine in the second 45 minutes. Ralston’s Celtic teammate, Callum McGregor, also said he was a “big, big character” and largely handled the rigours of “top-level football”.
Does Ralston need to leave the Hoops to progress his career?
McGregor also alluded to the fact that Ralston had precious little game time for much of the 2023/24 SPL season. The Bellshill-born right back racked up just 13 appearances for Brendan Rodgers last term, having played just 16 games in the 2022/23 campaign also.
Is it a sign of how shallow the talent pool is for Scotland’s national team that a player who plays just 29 games from a possible 76 SPL matches is a first-choice selection? One must surely think so. On the flip side, do these statistics suggest that Ralston should really look to depart the Hoops in search of regular first team football? It would be a gut-wrenching decision for him to make, given that he’s been at Celtic since 2007. Nevertheless, his ring rust was clear for all to see. No warm-up friendlies can make up for a lack of regular game time.
The problem is, Ralston signed a new long-term contract last year, tying him to the Hoops until June 2027. This would make it very difficult for another SPL side to afford to buy him at his likely market value. This is where the disparity in wealth between the Old Firm and the rest of the division is a huge negative for the Scottish national team. The up-and-coming Scottish talent in the ranks of the Old Firm need game time and exposure to big games to shine on the biggest stages.
Scotland’s inadequacies mustn’t be levelled solely at Ralston’s door. Football fans prefer to have a fall guy to divert the anger towards, but the problems are more complex than this. A root-and-branch review of the Tartan Army’s Euro 2024 campaign is needed by the Scottish FA before anything can move forward.
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