ALEX McLeish has indicated that Celtic left back Kieran Tierney is likely to feature for Scotland at centre half in future - and will be seriously considered as Scott Brown's successor as captain.

McLeish’s predecessor Gordon Strachan played Tierney at right back during the Russia 2018 qualifying campaign in order to get both him and Liverpool left back Andy Robertson into the same starting line-up.

However, the 20-year-old moved to the heart of the Scotland backline in the friendly against the Netherlands at Pittodrie back in November and performed impressively.

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Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers believes that his protégé has both the ability and physical attributes required to play for both his club and country at centre half going forward.

And McLeish would seem to agree – he revealed the youngster would not feature at right back under him as he named his squad for the friendlies against Costa Rica and Hungary later this month.

The 59-year-old also stressed that the defender, who helped Celtic storm nine points clear at the top of the Ladbrokes Premiership with a win over Rangers at Ibrox on Sunday, could replace Brown as skipper.

“I thought he did well at centre half and as captain against the Netherlands” he said. “It is there for him to be a regular Scotland international player.

“Unless it was an emergency, it is not in my plans to go forward with Tierney as the right back for Scotland. I don’t want to talk about systems, but you can see the way Tierney and Robertson fitted in at Pittodrie. That is a good option for us.

“You want to get your best players in the team and those are two of the best players that the country have produced.”

McLeish added: “As regards the captaincy, I have not decided that yet. I will wait until next week to reveal who the captain for these games will be. But Tierney didn’t do himself any harm with his Pittodrie showing and the leadership that he showed as well.

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“The captaincy is a big deal for me. You need a player who everybody respects. I am sure that everybody respects Kieran Tierney. He has got a great name in England as well. But we have got other candidates.”

Former Rangers manager McLeish was at the Glasgow derby at Ibrox on Sunday and marvelled at the performance of former Scotland captain Scott Brown in midfield as Celtic came from behind twice to win 3-2.

He admitted that the national team would miss Brown, who he handed his competitive debut for his country, but expressed confidence another player who fill the void he had left.

“Look at the player he has turned into,” he said. “He manages the game really well and has got a lot of tactical nous. It was the pass of the weekend for Moussa Dembele’s goal yesterday. We will miss that. But it is up to somebody else to take that mantle.”

Meanwhile, McLeish has revealed that he fought his way through the Beast from the East earlier this month on a quest that few people in football gave him a snowball’s chance in hell of succeeding in – persuading Scott McTominay to represent Scotland.

The Manchester United player has been featuring regularly for Jose Mourinho’s side in both the Premier League and Champions League this season and had attracted the interest of his England counterpart Gareth Southgate.

Yet, the nightmare journey proved to be well worth enduring as McLeish recorded the first major victory of his second stint as national team manager the minute he met with the talented young midfielder.

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“I felt very chuffed with myself with that one,” said McLeish. “I did a lot of travelling that night to get to Manchester. It was a wicked night with all the snow. I was actually very surprised by my first exchange with him because he said: ‘I want to play for Scotland’.

“There was no aggression from me. I wasn’t going there to plead with him or try to coerce him into playing for Scotland. I just wanted to ask him the question. I just wanted to look in his eyes and see if he did want to play for Scotland. I told him I wanted to pick him for these internationals so do you want to play for Scotland? He said: ‘Yes I want to play for Scotland’.

“I said: ‘Listen, I’m not forcing it down your throat’. But Scott intimated that he definitely wanted to play for Scotland. I told him I’d phone him again next week when he could give me a definitive answer. But the answer was the same."

McTominay, the Lancashire-born and raised player who qualifies to play for this country through his Helensburgh-born father, also spoke to England manager Southgate.

He has been criticised for his decision, accused of lacking belief in his abilities and has been given stick from supporters in the stands. “The fans have been giving him some banter saying he chose us because he wants to have his holidays every summer,” said McLeish.

It is, though, a hugely positive start to the Scotland manager’s reign. The defensive midfielder has played ahead of Paul Pogba, who joined United for £89 million last summer, in Jose Mourinhos’s side in recent weeks, including in the Champions League. McLeish is confident he is ready for international football.

“I think he’s got the temperament and mentality and I believe he has the confidence,” he said. “He’s working under the tutorage of Jose Mourinho who is an absolute legend in coaching circles. There is so much he can impart onto Scott.

“And now I believe we can help him to progress also by giving him additional advice. You don’t get a lot of time to coach players on international duty, but we will be able to do that as well.

“He’s not got all the answers. He’s 21. He’s a young guy learning the game and we have to be patient with young guys."