Burley on verge of sack after Wales thrashing

GEORGE BURLEY’S troubled reign as Scotland manager looks certain to end this week after the Scottish FA confirmed they will hold talks over his future.

Burley managed to hold onto his job in the wake of his failure to steer Scotland to a play-off spot for the World Cup finals but his position has come under intense scrutiny again following Saturday’s 3-0 defeat to Wales.

Furious travelling fans in the Cardiff City stadium turned on the manager after Scotland found themselves trailing by three goals after just 35 minutes, demanding his dismissal and directing verbal abuse towards the beleaguered boss.

Burley himself then attempted to dodge questions about his future in his post-match press conference before eventually conceding it would not be his decision whether he would still be in charge for the next game against the Czechs in March.

SFA vice-president Alan McRae is unable to meet with the rest of the board on Monday but a meeting will be convened in the coming days, with Burley unlikely to gain a second vote of confidence from his employers after remaining in the role following the failure to qualify for the World Cup.

The vitriol aimed at Burley in south Wales on Saturday appears to have served as the tipping pint for the SFA, but while Steven Naismith, the Rangers striker, admitted he would have joined in the jeering of the Scotland team if he was a member of the Tartan Army, he insisted Burley should not be singled out for abuse in the wake of yet another disappointment for the national team.

“It wasn’t just the manager, it was all of us who were getting it,” Naismith said.

“I can definitely see the fans’ point of view. If I was a fan in the crowd, I would have been doing the same. It wasn’t good enough. They travel a long way and pay a lot of money hoping to see a good game. We destroyed that basically.

“The manager is the boss and he is the one who is going to get the stick but it’s everybody. He’s not the one who goes out on the park and wins the games – that’s the strikers. And he’s not the one who goes out on the park and defends – that’s the defenders.”

Scotland were left reeling when goals from David Edwards, Simon Church and Aaron Ramsey handed the home nation an overwhelming advantage in the opening 35 minutes.