Graham & Ure get first Scotland call-ups under Pocognoli

Luke Graham and Robbie Ure are in line to earn their first full call-ups to Scotland. As BBC Sport reports, Sebastien Pocognoli — appointed after Steve Clarke stepped down — will name his first squad on Tuesday.

Pocognoli’s first selections

Graham arrives on the back of a strong spell with Championship club Stoke City, where he’s been an ever-present and the team are unbeaten in their last four matches. The 22-year-old centre-back was also included in Scotland’s pre-World Cup training camp in May following a breakthrough Dundee season, where he won the club’s players’ player and young player of the year awards. He was an unused substitute in the send-off friendly win over Curacao, which was Clarke’s final game in charge at Hampden Park, and he has three Scotland caps at under-21 level.

Ure, also 22, is another headline option. BBC Sport notes his European interest after a free-scoring run in Sweden with Sirius (20 goals and three assists in 20 matches) that led to a £5.5m summer move to La Liga side Sevilla. He is yet to score in Spain, but the new head coach appears tempted to secure him soon, given his eligibility for Ukraine, with a squad announcement expected at 11:00 BST.

Nations League B start

Pocognoli takes charge of Scotland for the first time on 26 September in the Nations League B opener against Slovenia, with his Hampden debut coming three days later versus Switzerland.

BBC Sport also underlines the expectation of freshness in the squad after Scotland failed to reach the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time. Hearts head coach Wouter Vrancken said he is “confident” that several Gorgie players will be included, highlighting the recent form of James Wilson and wingers Calvin Miller and Josh McPake. Scott Brown has similarly voiced optimism about the Hearts wide players.

Source: BBC Sport.