Davie Provan has described Brendan Rodgers’ public endorsement of Alex McLeish’s decision to drop Leigh Griffiths for Scotland as a ‘kick in the wotsits’ for the Celtic striker.
Griffiths pulled out of the Scotland squad this international break, claiming he needed to work on his fitness, but the decision came after McLeish publicly stated that Steven Naismith was now his number one striker.
Hoops boss Rodgers then backed McLeish’s decision and publicly called on Griffiths to up his game, a decision which Provan has now slammed, while also questioning the real reasons behind the striker’s international withdrawal.
In a column for the Scottish Sun, Provan said: “As for Griffiths? The wee man couldn’t have made a bigger a**e of this if he’d tried. If he’d handled things differently, he’d have the sympathy vote in his pocket after being shafted by Eck. By asking Griff to do a Mo Farah shift against Belgium, then bombing him for the Albania game, McLeish hung the striker out to dry.
“The Celt got another kick in the wotsits when Brendan Rodgers endorsed Eck’s decision to drop him for Steven Naismith. Rodgers’ public intervention must have had Griff scratching his head. But what should have been a storm in a teacup turned gale-force when the Celtic striker pulled out of the squad for Israel.
“We shouldn’t buy the idea it’s a fitness issue. Griffiths is fitter now than when he turned up for the Belgium game. The only things that change in Scottish football’s madhouse are the characters.”
OPINION
This is an interesting take on the situation from Provan, and one that is hard to disagree with. Griffiths has not handled the situation brilliantly, although there are those who believe him when he says it is for fitness reasons. McLeish has not come out of this well at all either, especially after the abominable and embarrassing result against Israel this week, in which Scotland failed to impress at all. They really could have done with Griffiths coming off the bench for that one, with the Celtic striker having the ability to stretch the Israel defence with his extra pace. As it happened he was not available, and no one has come out well at all. Provan’s criticism of Rodgers is hard to argue with as well, with the Hoops boss inexplicably using the situation as leverage to criticise Griffiths for his poor form. Rodgers will no doubt regret his words as well.