Scotland head coach Sebastien Pocognoli has confirmed Angus Gunn will retain the No.1 jersey for Saturday's Nations League clash with North Macedonia in Skopje, despite the goalkeeper facing heavy criticism following Scotland's defeat to Switzerland.
Speaking in the Macedonian capital last night, Pocognoli made clear his intention to stand by the San Jose Earthquakes keeper as he seeks his first competitive win since succeeding Steve Clarke. Scotland have taken just one point from their opening two Nations League matches under the new boss.
Full backing for Gunn
Asked directly whether he plans to keep faith with Gunn, Pocognoli said: "Yes, he played a good game in Slovenia. He was quite stable and quite good and he showed a good level also in the camp. So, for me, there was not any doubt or something like this.
"I fully support him because I think all of my players in this new process need good support because the way that we play is different and more demanding, on the ball and off the ball. And it's the same for the goalkeeper as well.
"We can always discuss things about pure technique. But I am fully behind him, I support him and he will play tomorrow. After the games you can go to all the players and say we should have done this better or that better."
Pocognoli urges patience
The head coach stressed he will not make hasty judgments after only two games in charge. "I have only had two games in charge and I will not start to rush with anyone. I need to see a good game for a full 90 minutes. Then when this first camp is over, we will analyse the performances and the attitude on the pitch and off the pitch.
"But that's not only for the goalkeeper - it's for everybody. I'm not someone who makes a decision after one performance. We need to take time. Yes, the other goalkeepers are doing well but we need to be proactive for all the positions on the pitch."
Pocognoli was less forthcoming, however, when asked whether £25m Bournemouth winger Ben Doak could expect to start in Skopje.
Doak wait explained
He said: "The camp was planned from the start and Ben will get his minutes as a starter soon. But the Switzerland game has delayed everything a little bit. It doesn't mean he won't get his minutes.
"But we had a plan in place for all of the games and we didn't get a good response against Switzerland. I learned a lot from that game because we played with cohesion and we suffered together for 80 minutes."
The manager acknowledged his new team is in need of a morale-boosting win against Macedonia, followed by another three points at home to Slovenia on Tuesday night.
Focus on performance
He said: "I'm not just looking at the short term about what six points can mean for us or not. I just want to get a good result for the players and the staff because we have worked so hard from the first day.
"There was disappointment after the Switzerland game, not so much from the result but because we couldn't show what we wanted to show and apply what we have worked on.
"In the second half in Slovenia we played some good football and we want to show that again in this game.
"It's never easy to go away from home. That's the reality in each international game but we just want to have a good performance and win the game. That's the most important thing. Yeah, the opponent is not maybe in the best shape in terms of recent results but we have to focus on ourselves.
"It was the same against Switzerland. We didn't concentrate on how good they are - we just wanted to bring some principles onto the pitch and we will do the same again tomorrow."
