Scotland captain Andy Robertson has not given up hope of facing Kazakhstan on Thursday despite missing the team flight to undergo dental surgery.
The left-back travelled to Glasgow after Liverpool’s Premier League win at Fulham on Sunday but was told to stay behind to get an abscess treated as his international team-mates flew out late at night.
Scotland face Kazakhstan in their opening Euro 2020 qualifier this week and assistant coach Peter Grant admits Robertson is still “desperate” to be involved.
Grant said: “It’s a big blow. We were prepared for it obviously, before the game on Sunday we knew he was struggling a little bit but he wanted to play.
“And the way he is, he is still desperate to play and still trying to get himself back out here as well. That’s the way he is, that’s why he was selected as captain. But it is a blow for us, because he is a fantastic player.
“But we have always spoken about Kieran (Tierney) and Andy, who is going to play here and who’s going to play there. The beauty is we have two fantastic players. You are never always going to have everyone fit. But look at the quality you have to come in if he is fully fit.”
When asked if Robertson would join up ahead of Sunday’s game in San Marino, Grant said: “I would hope he would join up for here. He’s going to see about his tooth problem today and we will take it from there.
“Toothache is one of the worst problems you can have, but he is so determined to be part of it. He wanted to come out last night.
“He showed that flying up straight after the game, how desperate he was to be here. But when he got checked out it wasn’t possible for him to do that.
“If it was anybody but Andy Robertson you would say there’s no chance. But knowing the way Andy is, if he thinks he’s got a chance there is always a possibility. We won’t rule him out.”