Strachan: Hearts Success Would Be Huge, But I Couldn't Stomach It!

Speaking exclusively with BOYLE Sports three time Scottish Premiership winning manager Gordon Strachan has given his perspective on the rise of Hearts and whether their new found form can be sustained to finally end the Old Firm duopoly.

Elsewhere, the Edinburgh man who was last found in the dugout managing Scotland has offered his thoughts on whether Scotland can qualify automatically for the next World Cup, whether McTominay can become Scotland's "Bale like" figure and his prediction ahead of Scotland vs Denmark next Tuesday.

Hearts

A Hearts Scottish Premiership "Would Be Huge"

It would be huge, and it would be the dream for everyone there to split up the Old Firm. For a while, everyone's dream was to be second between Celtic and Rangers. But due to circumstances at both Rangers and Celtic, there's a perfect storm at the moment that allows a team to come through this gap. They haven't been lucky at Hearts; they've prepared for this. With Tony Bloom and Ann Budge, who have done a lot of good work there, and Derek McInnes going in and the way they've signed players, it's a perfect storm for them right now to sail through it.

If they can do that, that would be fantastic. For me, as a Hibs supporter as a kid, this is the worst thing that could happen – I'm always joking. But as a Hibs fan, I've still got a lot of Hibs mates that find it difficult to deal with.

But I've got to show great admiration for them. They've done well. The recruitment's been great, helped by Tony Bloom at Brighton again, whatever he does. We should all be doing it, but there are only so many good players out there. We all use this data thing because we'll all be drawn against each other. It's been good for the game, something to talk about. Can they hang in there? They probably could, but as I said, it's a bit different when you're in the lead. But at this moment in time, they're doing a great job. They drew yesterday against Dundee United, who are a hard team to beat. Slip-ups are going to happen. They have to deal with that kind of setback if they're going to win anything, that's for sure.

Rangers

Early Verdict: Rohl’s Rangers

Rangers are a decent team at the moment. They played Dundee yesterday, and for spells, Dundee did okay against them. There is fallibility there on the Rangers' side. They're not a great Rangers side by any means. They will get better with Danny Rohl because I've seen his work at Sheffield Wednesday. I like the way he goes about his job. The young German coaches at the moment are big things in European football.

I spoke to Barry Bannan about him because I still speak to Barry. Barry thinks he's a top, top coach. Now, if you get that from a really good player, you know what you're dealing with here. So I think it's been a great move for them. And would you say it was based on possession football? No, it's based on trying to win games of football, trying to get the ball forward. Now, I'm not talking about lumping the ball forward. I'm talking about people trying to play through people. So if they get better players with this coach, then they can be a threat, that's for sure.

Raskin’s Return

Nicolas Raskin is a very good player. There are a couple of good players at Rangers, but he's the one who, in my opinion, if he were to miss a game, Rangers would struggle. I think near the end of Russell Martin's reign, he realised how good Raskin was. The players are back, but there is definitely room for improvement in the player level at Rangers.

Celtic

Can Celtic Comeback?

When they last lost the title, you've got to remember that was the Covid year as well. There were extraordinary circumstances there. But Celtic will be a threat. Celtic, again, need to add one or two players in the window. If they can do that, then they'll be a real threat. They are always going to be a threat because they've got good enough players in the team just now. Maybe lacking a little bit of physical presence in certain areas because that's big. You look at Arsenal, they're a wonderful team, but look at the size of them and all the rest of it.

I think Celtic may have a problem now and then with the physical aspect. That's the only way some teams can beat them. No team can beat them at playing football. They have to understand there's got to be a physical presence when they play against them. To deal with that, they might need, at times, to have more physical presence in their team, that's for sure. But the moment it went 4-0 yesterday against Celtic and again start climbing closer to Hearts, it's a little test for Hearts again when this happens.

Scottish National Team

Scotland's World Cup Chances Without Playoff

They definitely can do it. First of all, it must have been hard for Steve Clarke when they played Greece to actually sit there with a smile on his face. Actually, behind it, there was this kind of frown: ‘How did we win that game?’ We've all been there. How did that happen? I can't start talking about tactics now because the other team were better, that's their technique. But they stuck in there. You can say that about Scotland.

And they've got that physical presence now, where they can hang on through physical presence. They're expecting to go to Greece. I think they can go to Greece and get a 0-0 draw. I think there's enough in them to do that. I expect them to be in the playoffs, but they can definitely do it. They can definitely get there on their own steam.

Can McTominay Emulate Bale's Performances For Wales

I don't believe he can do it himself with magical technique because there are a lot of people in the world who can change games with magic. He doesn't have that magical technique. He needs a solid team around him, and he needs to be in a position where he's effective at scoring goals. The rest of the team needs to understand that. We don't have those people who can limit others or do something special. We're a hard-working team. We're a group of players who know what they're good at.

If we can keep doing the right things and Scott McTominay keeps getting the chances – crosses, free kicks, whatever – then he's your man. Followed by John McGinn and Ryan Christie, or any other good midfield players we've got, like Billy Gilmour.

Scotland vs Denmark

Prediction: Scotland vs Denmark

I don't think Scotland will get beaten in the next two games. I believe we have enough talent, especially in our midfield. While some people are calling for a striker to score all our goals, unfortunately, we don't have one. However, we do have a midfield that scores goals. Some might compare this to teams like Manchester City, where Erling Haaland scores many goals, and they might not get as many from midfield. But ultimately, the total number of goals remains the same. It simply depends on how you shape your team.

Scotland still manage to score goals from midfield, so it doesn't truly matter that we don't have a top-tier striker who can score 40-50 goals. We have good strikers, but not those who can consistently create goals out of nothing. When I talk about a top striker at this level, I mean someone like Gareth Bale for Wales when they were incredibly successful, someone who could produce something special from nothing, alongside a solid team. We don't have that kind of player. Robert Lewandowski was similar for Poland; we played against them and drew both times.

Regarding predictions, I'd go with 0-0 and 1-1. I often tell managers I mentor that they'll never get the score right when they lie in bed at night thinking about how a game will go. So, while you ask, I'll answer, but I don't really know.

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