Southampton striker Ross Stewart has ended a four-year absence from international football by being named in Scotland's 26-man squad for the 2026 World Cup. Steve Clarke, maintaining his typical approach, opted for familiarity in selecting the players who will represent the country in a World Cup for the first time in 28 years.
Stewart's Form Earns Recall
Stewart's excellent form towards the end of the domestic season—the 29-year-old has scored five times in 10 games for Southampton—led Clarke to include him in the squad. A substitute appearance in a Nations League game against Armenia was the last time Stewart donned Scotland colours. An injury to Tommy Conway is likely to have boosted Stewart's cause, but Clarke said the former Sunderland man was always in his thoughts.
Clarke praised Stewart's impact: "Ross was in my squad a few years ago, showing that he can come up to this level and was good in the squad. He had a terrible run of injuries. From January onwards, he’s had a rich vein of form where he’s shown that he can score big goals in big games. The Arsenal game in the cup, he shows he can have an impact in games of that level. The World Cup will be a very high level as well. He’s shown that he can score from the bench."
"He has been in the group before, so the vast majority of the players will know him. He fitted in the group very well the last time he was in it. It was a few years ago but he was good within the group. You know I put a lot of importance on characters," Clarke added.
Gordon Included Despite Injury
Clarke has done little else to alter a squad that has served him well. Craig Gordon, aged 43, is named among three goalkeepers despite injury significantly curtailing his involvement with Hearts this season. Gordon will challenge Angus Gunn for the No. 1 jersey. Clarke dispatched Chris Woods, his goalkeeping coach, to watch Gordon in training at Hearts.
"He’s training very well," Clarke said. "Craig assures us he’s fully fit, and he deserves to go because he played a part in the qualifying campaign. He missed the last tournament. He has shown a tremendous resilience to be in the squad. As long as goalkeepers are working to their maximum in training, you feel that they can come in and play for a number of games."
Young Talent Curtis Called Up
At the other end of the age scale, the 19-year-old Findlay Curtis has been called up thanks to an impressive loan at Kilmarnock from Rangers. "He’s got something a little bit different," said Clarke. "He’s also shown that he can score a goal or two in a Kilmarnock team that was struggling down at the bottom of the league. The team has finished well, Findlay has finished the season in a great place and it’s nice to have a young one in the squad."
Notable Omissions
Lennon Miller, Oli McBurnie, and Ross McCrorie are among those to miss out. Clarke called four players—Miller, McCrorie, Scott Bain, and Andy Irving—to outline his thinking after they did not make the cut. The manager also spoke to Conway, whose World Cup dream was ruined by the ankle injury sustained in Middlesbrough’s playoff semi-final against Southampton.
World Cup Schedule
Scotland’s World Cup campaign kicks off against Haiti in Boston on 13 June. They face Morocco in the same city before travelling to Miami to take on Brazil. Scotland will play pre-tournament friendlies against Curaçao and Bolivia, the latter in New Jersey.
