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da luck： Writing in his Daily Record column, Barry Ferguson believes Rangers star Ryan Jack deserves more international recognition and could get it under new Scotland boss Steve Clarke.
What’s he said?
With the arrival of a new international manager comes speculation about what his team will look like moving forward, and as a former Scotland regular Ferguson knows a thing or two about what it takes to play for the country.
He’s been blown away by the progress Jack has made under Steven Gerrard over the last couple of months, and now reckons the 27-year-old is well placed to make a big impact on the international scene.
Writing in The Daily Record, he explained:
“Ryan Jack has been a Scotland player in waiting for the last six years. But it’s the way he’s been playing over the last six weeks that makes me believe he’s finally about to come of age at international level.
“Put it this way, I’ll be absolutely amazed if the Rangers man is not selected to be part of Steve Clarke’s plans next week when the new manager announces his first squad for the qualifiers against Cyprus and Belgium.
“Don’t get me wrong, he’s always had the ability. That’s why he got his first call-up for a game against Croatia in 2013 after captaining the Under-21s.
“Yet in all that time he’s only picked up two full caps and that tells you he’s never fully managed to deliver on all of his promise. He’s always been almost there. Nearly ready. Always there or thereabouts on the edges.
“But the player I’ve seen recently looks like he could step right into international football and really make his presence felt. I honestly believe he’s improved that much in such a short space of time.”
Should Jack be winning more caps?
There’s no doubt that Jack is now a deserved firm fixture in Gerrard’s first-team and has really improved since joining as one of Pedro Caixinha’s signings in 2017.
His problem when it comes to Scotland though is the quality of competition available in the midfield that Clarke can call upon.
Check out Keith from C’mon the Hoops’ fascinating video on the origins of the Old Firm derby below…
Callum McGregor has proven to be a far more effective midfielder in the Scottish top-flight over the last couple of years and there’s stars such as Stuart Armstrong who are playing at a higher level than both.
With others emerging like Scott McTominay, making a serious breakthrough at Man United, and John McGinn, who won Aston Villa’s player of the year award, the chance of Jack being a regular starter for Scotland seems slim.
That’s not to say he shouldn’t be included in upcoming squads, just that his readiness to take the Scotland team by storm is perhaps a bit overblown by Ferguson.