Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Barry Bannan has conceded that it is going to be hard for him to get back in the Scotland team after he was snubbed by new boss Steve Clarke.

The 29-year-old has won 27 caps for his country since making his debut nine years ago but the most recent of those came in 2017.

And, despite a change in manager, with Steve Clarke taking over, Bannan's fortunes haven't changed, with the ex-Kilmarnock chief leaving the Owls playmaker out once again as they suffered defeats to Russia and Belgium over the past few days.

Speaking to the Sheffield Star, the left-footer acknowledged the fierce competition he is up against in midfield and insisted he will do all he can to try and force his way back into the reckoning.

"I’ve spoken to Steve Clarke a couple of times and made myself available. But the squad has been announced and I’m not in it. It’s just one of those things. I’ve got to keep working hard for my club and what will happen will happen.

"In my opinion the strongest position in the Scotland squad at the minute is the midfield. There’s a lot of other good midfielders who are not the in squad like [Fulham’s] Tom Cairney and [Newcastle’s] Matt Ritchie."

The verdict

Unfortunately for Bannan, he is right when he says that the midfield area is full of very good players right now, with John McGinn, Scott McTominay, Callum McGregor, Ryan Christie and Stuart Armstrong just some of the options available to Clarke.

Given they are all younger than him, you can understand why he fears he may have played his last game for his country.

However, things do change very quickly in football and there's no doubt he has real quality, so if he keeps performing for the Owls this season then he certainly has enough about him to force his way into a squad at the very least.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.