SNS GroupScottish FA chief executive Ian Maxwell says Steve Clarke is the man to take Scotland to the World Cup but admits plans are in place for whenever the head coach leaves his post.
Clarke’s contract as national team boss runs out at the end of the World Cup cycle and he has said there is a “75% chance” he will leave at the end of his current agreement.
Recent results, including last week’s home friendly defeat to Iceland, have had some of the Tartan Army questioning whether Clarke should even be the man to lead the country into the qualifiers later this year but Maxwell is convinced the potential is there to end a near 30-year exile from the tournament.
“I’ve got absolutely no doubt that we have a squad that, when fully fit and firing, are fully capable of getting us to the World Cup,” Maxwell told STV.
“We’ve got a manager that’s desperate to do that.
“If you look back at the last five or six years, that’s the missing link, that World Cup qualification.
“Back-to-back Euros is incredible, going from League C to League A in the Nations League is really good work, though obviously we went back down to League B this season.
“Getting to the World Cup is the missing link. That’s the bit Steve and the players are desperate to make sure that we achieve.”
While Clarke has taken flak frequently since the group stage exit at last year’s Euros, Maxwell shrugged that off and said it was important for everyone to be united behind the staff and team.
“Criticism is part of being a football manager,” he said. “He’s absolutely determined to get us to a World Cup.
“There is a very short-term view when it comes to football managers. There’s been three appointed in the last weeks and none of them have been greeted with universal approval.
“He wants to get us to the World Cup, the players want to get us to the World Cup, we want to get there and we need everybody to get behind Steve and the lads to make sure we do that.
“Everybody is aware of his contract situation and there will be a conversation about that at the time. The focus has to be on the World Cup. We’ll deal with those matters as and when they arise.”
When they do arise, Maxwell admits he has a plan in place if Clarke does leave his post.
“If I am doing my job properly then there’s always plans in place,” he said. “You’re always aware of the managers that are out there because managers can leave for a variety of different reasons.
“That can be unexpected so there’s always a bit of horizon-scanning and looking.
“That’s nothing unusual and just matter of course for someone in my role.”
Maxwell was speaking after the Scottish FA’s AGM and reflecting on what he says has been a successful year for the organisation.
He said: “2024 was a really, really successful year for us and we were able to discuss that with our members today.
“We had record turnover, record profit and all that finance will be redistributed and reinvested back into the game to help it grow up and down the country.
“A lot of that comes from success on the pitch and qualifying for the Euros was a big part of that. Everybody will look back very fondly on the experience they had in Germany. A lot of my friends still talk about it really warmly and want to make sure we get to the next one and to the World Cup in 2026.”
He also looked back on Willie Collum’s first season as head of refereeing and another year of controversy over decision-making.
“I think he’s been a breath of fresh air and I think the clubs will say that,” Maxwell said.
“We’ve engaged more with clubs, managers and players than we’ve ever done. We’ve got The VAR Show where we are trying to educate the public, and that’s an interesting challenge in its own right.
“We’ve got the KMI Panel and transparency is definitely there. We’ve got Martin Atkinson who is a significant appointment as VAR manager and we’re working with William and referees to make sure we get as many decisions right as we possibly can.
“We’re getting more right than we’ve ever done but there are always going to be subjective elements, disagreements and debates.
“That’s always going to happen and there will be debates on refereeing issues for as long as football lasts, I would imagine.
“We need to improve it, We’ll always strive to improve it.
“I would separate out the decisions that are subjective from the ones that everybody looks at and says ‘They’ve got that wrong’.
“Those are the ones that we need to reduce, and the ones that we need to eradicate.
“We’re working hard to do that.”
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