Pressley words give Dons hope

AberdeenSteven Pressley says the door is always open for any Scottish player to find a way into the current Scotland squad.

The former Hearts skipper, who is now part of manager George Burley's Scotland set-up, cited the return of ex-Tynecastle team-mate Jamie McAllister and the selection of striker Chris Iwelumo as proof that there is no barrier to playing for the Scottish side.

The news will be welcomed by Dons players, none of which have featured in Burley's squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

Pressley said: "The door is always open for players playing at a high standard.

"Players develop at different stages in their careers, some relatively young, some a bit longer like Paul Hartley and myself.

"Jamie and Chris have put it all together at the age of 30. Jamie's been in England over the past two-and-a-half years and performed exceptionally well while Chris has scored eight goals in seven starts this season.

"If you are performing well on a regular basis there is always a great opportunity and what a time to be involved, with the potential to reach the World Cup."





To that end, Pressley echoed Burley's words in agreeing tomorrow's match falls into the "must-win" category for Scotland, the game their first at Hampden in the qualifying campaign following a mixed start with a defeat in Macedonia followed by a victory in Iceland. He said: "If we have aspirations to be in South Africa in two years' time, we really do need to win our home games.



"This is the first opportunity for us to do so but we'll be going into the game in a positive manner after the result in Iceland.



"I know from my own international career, in which I played against Norway twice, that they'll play a very British style of game. They'll have two quite physical front players and they'll put us under pressure by getting the ball into the box and making us defend.



"We have to be prepared for that, nullify the service to those two, be competitive and resilient in our defending. If we do that and play to our own strengths then there is no doubt in my mind we will win the game."



Scotland, of course, go into the game handicapped by the loss of captain Stephen McManus following his red card in Reykjavik - Manchester United's Darren Fletcher will take the armband tomorrow - and striker Kenny Miller.



But Pressley insisted Scotland can overcome those blows, pointing out how veteran defender Davie Weir will step in for the Celtic skipper, while the likes of Hibs' Steven Fletcher was among those, Iwelumo included, desperate to start up front.



He said: "Davie has been a terrific servant to Scotland. I haven't seen a lot of him myself this season but George says he is playing at a very high level again.



"Having Kenny missing is very disappointing, he has been the main striker for a number of years. But him missing will give others an opportunity.



"We watched Steven for the under-21s against Slovakia when he performed exceptionally well. He's looked really sharp in training and, while George will make the decision as to who will play, there is no doubt Steven is in his thinking."



Tomorrow will give Scotland a rare opportunity to concentrate on just one international match rather than a double-header, a situation Pressley believes they can take advantage of, particularly with the backing of the Tartan Army.



He said: "A sell-out at Hampden is always a special occasion and the atmosphere the fans created has been reflected in performances and results over many years.



"We have a strong home record in competitive matches and there's no doubt that's partially down to the atmosphere generated by the support."



Pressley believes the players out on the pitch at Hampden detect an intensity of support which always isn't there for friendly matches, likening the impact it has on the team to Celtic's home matches in the Champions League.



Like Celtic in Europe, Scotland's away form hasn't been the greatest although, like Hoops boss Gordon Strachan, it's a record Burley and his management team are trying to improve, the 2-1 win in Iceland thus proving particularly satisfying.



Pressley said: "There's an intensity in the atmosphere, very similar to that when Celtic play at home in the Champions League, which has a significant impact on the players' performance.





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