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Scotland boss Steve Clarke has admitted he is prepared to invoke a FIFA rule which would prevent players flagged as injured for international duty from featuring for their clubs for a further five days after the international window.

International managers have the ability to utilise the FIFA rule if players called up to their squad withdraw through injury, although it is rare to see it activated due to the conflict it can cause with clubs.

Andy Robertson withdrew from the latest Scotland squad through injury but the rule will not be enforced, meaning he can feature against Crystal Palace this weekend if he is passed fit.

In the future though, specifically for Scotland's Euro 2020 playoff matches in March, Clarke has reluctantly admitted he could look to take action if they are without players for those crucial matches.

"As you probably noticed from my short time at Kilmarnock., I don’t mind a fight if I have to have a fight, as long as it’s a fight for the right reason. If I do have to have a fight, I’ll face it head-on. I don’t shirk away from it. I don’t think I’m a soft character," he said.

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"If I need to be strong, I’ll be strong. But, for the moment, I don’t see any value in it. When we talk about March, I am sure everyone will turn up for the squad I pick in March, injuries permitting.

"It becomes a case of not wanting to cut off your nose to spite your face. You have to be in a position where you can get your best players.

"You don’t want to cause upset between players, clubs and international managers. I also have to take it at face value that every call-off is an injury call-off.

"The only one which was for personal reasons this time was Matt Phillips. Everyone else was flagged up as an injury by their club. You don’t want to harm the relationship between players and their clubs. It’s easy to say: ‘Invoke the five-day rule’.

"But I’m not sure there are any winners when you do that. It puts the player in a difficult position."