BRENDAN Rodgers has admitted many of his players are shattered after playing 60 games in all competitions this season - but insisted they will be able to raise themselves one last time in the William Hill Scottish Cup final on Saturday.
Rodgers is pleased that only three of the Parkhead club’s players - Stuart Armstrong, Jack Hendry and Lewis Morgan - have been selected by his Scotland counterpart for the end-of-season friendlies against Peru and Mexico.
He feels McLeish and the national team will benefit from the likes of James Forrest, Craig Gordon, Leigh Griffiths and Callum McGregor having extended breaks from competitive football when the UEFA Nations League gets underway in September.
“I had to take Kieran Tierney off at the weekend because he was absolutely shattered,” he said. “Players aren’t robots – they’re young guys who give everything in every game they play in.
“But it’s common sense to leave the other guys out because, otherwise, Scotland would suffer later on. I assume they’ll be important men for Scotland going forward. I want to help but I also have to look about the welfare of our players.
"We’re not going to cry about it. It’s what we want to do, to get to the late stages of the competition, this is what success brings. You can see the toll it takes on elements of this season. It’s not a problem for the cup final.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel