The only way is up for Scotland

Scotland are looking to get their World Cup qualifying campaign up and running in Glasgow on Friday night against Wales. 

A poor start to the group sees the Scots bottom of the pile with four games having been played. As per most campaigns it's now about rebuilding, and with the introduction of Gordon Strachan at the helm it is thought Scotland will use the attributes of the players they have rather than trying to work them into a system. 

As a fan this method is a welcome change with the squad containing some strong attacking players with Steven Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes to name only two. 

The tactics of previous managers to set the stall out with a 4-5-1 or a 4-4-1-1 did admittedly have its place when Kenny Miller was the only striking option. 

But with international football you have to work with what you've got, and this current squad are defensively average. With every attack and set-piece you fear a goal. With this being the case Scotland's best form of defence may well be attack. 

The obvious threat from Gareth Bale has to be addressed after he singlehandedly got Wales a victory in Cardiff. The best way to neutralise him is to defend as a team, but this doesn't mean park the bus and feed of the scraps. 

The players wearing the dark blue need to go out and be confident in their own ability and put in a strong attacking performance from the off. An integral part of making this happen is having the mid-field play forward rather than turning back towards goal. 

All things considered a strong team performance at Hampden Park can see Scotland climb off the bottom of the table and give the Tartan Army something to be proud of. 

Blair Ferguson @BlairFerguson4

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