Bullish Burley demands fresh start from Scots

GEORGE BURLEY has placed Scotland’s failed World Cup campaign firmly in the past and believes today’s friendly with Wales in Cardiff signals the start of a new chapter.

The manager will take the positives from their final two matches against Macedonia and Holland but, as far as he is concerned, it is now time to move on after missing out on a play-off spot in the race for a place in South Africa next summer.

Despite intense speculation over his future in the wake of that double header, Burley remains in the hot seat for now and is determined to use this clash to mould a squad capable of competing when qualifying for the European Championships gets underway.

Asked if the friendly in the Welsh capital was the start of a new campaign, Burley declared: “It’s already started! You move on from the last one. I was asked the question: Do you think you are starting from scratch? I don’t think we are.

“We have built a good team spirit and our performance level got better as the World Cup campaign went on; against Macedonia and Holland, I thought we had two exceptional performances.

“We just missed getting to the play-offs. But we have spoken about it and we just have to keep improving. It’s all about progression. Wales is a big game for us.

“We are looking to keep progressing, we are looking to win matches and get a squad that’s strong enough to qualify for a major championships, which Scotland hasn’t done for a number of years now. Progression is key and I feel that we are improving and we have a hungry squad and I think we are getting better with each game.

“Saturday’s game will be a good test, I’m looking forward to it, the preparation is good and we will have a look at some new players. So it promises to be an exciting game.”

Burley added: “You are trying to build a squad and what you are trying to do is get that spirit. You don’t get that many opportunities and you want to get as many caps as you can.

“You want to enjoy it, play in a manner to win games and express yourself. We’ve got a strong squad and we want players who want to be in the starting line-up and show what they can do. Players who want to get to finals. We got some belief after the Holland game and we were unfortunate against one of the best teams in the world. Football-wise, we certainly weren’t second best. Now we have to take that on to the Euros.”