Gordon Strachan inspired by Scotland players during training session
Gordon Strachan was inspired by his Scotland players during their first day's training ahead of the 2018 World Cup qualifier against England on Saturday.
The Scotland squad turned up at the Mar Hall Hotel training base on the outskirts of Glasgow in various levels of fitness to prepare for the visit of the Auld Enemy to Hampden Park.
The national team boss confirmed that left-back Kieran Tierney is having a gum shield made for the game following his mouth injury which meant he trained alone for the most part.
Striker Leigh Griffiths was not feeling well while midfielder Darren Fletcher also missed out after playing in the Michael Carrick testimonial on Sunday.
However, Strachan and his coaching staff were given a lift by the attitude of the other players who reported for duty after a long domestic season.
He said: ''It was absolutely, completely different to what you think.
"At times with a coach you are meant to inspire players but the players inspired the whole coaching staff this morning.
"As you know there is a group who have not trained for a long time and not played for a long time.
"We put on an extra-hard session for them at the end of training and when it started everybody in the squad joined in.
"The reason being is that the players thought, 'if they are doing it we are all doing it'.
"So they came ambling across and started doing the same as the rest of the guys - much to the concern of the fitness coach may I add, who was having kittens at the time - but it just shows you that it is players who drive a group on, which was absolutely phenomenal. An inspiration.
"This is a huge game, an exciting game.
"A game everybody is looking forward to and the players put a marker down this morning at the first training session - we want to be ready for this game."
Tierney, who turned 20 on Monday, was substituted in the first half of Celtic's 2-1 William Hill Scottish Cup final win over Aberdeen on May 27 after Dons striker Jayden Stockley's flailing arm caught him in the face, albeit he returned from the hospital in time for the trophy presentation.
"He is fine but he told me last week he would be fine," said Strachan, who has no concerns over either Griffiths or Fletcher.
"It is just a matter of getting a gum shield made.
"There is no pain there really, it is just making sure he doesn't get a knock in that area. But he is ready to go.
"He joined in some of the training this morning, wanted to do a bit more but we thought 'better not', just in case we have an accident, but he is in a right good place at the moment.''
Tierney is one of six Celtic players who are in the squad after starting in the 1-0 home win over Slovenia in March which breathed life into qualification hopes.
Chris Martin's late strike moved the Scots to win a point of third-placed Slovenia and two behind Slovakia, with leaders England six clear of Scotland after five Group F fixtures.
Skipper Scott Brown, Griffiths, Stuart Armstrong, James Forrest, Craig Gordon and the young left-back are still basking in the glow of an historic Hoops treble and on the back of a domestic season in which they went unbeaten.
Strachan admitted it would be folly not to tap into their collective confidence.
He said: "It would be stupid of me not to use that enthusiasm and that run of games that they are on, the pride they have got in themselves.
"It was the same with West Brom, we had three players in the last time (James Morrison, Darren Fletcher, Matt Phillips), Phillips didn't make it but we used that because they were doing well.
"So we look at these players and see how they feel, some are in better mental condition than others but once they get a couple of days training, they feel good about themselves."