Strachan backs Boruc to bounce back

03 April 2009 16:41
Strachan was at fault for two goals in Poland's 3-2 defeat by Northern Ireland at Windsor Park last Saturday, the third goal especially embarrassing when he let a back-pass bounce over his foot. Boruc was then axed from the squad following a confrontation with Poland boss Leo Beenhakker when he was told he would play no part in the midweek World Cup qualifier against San Marino. It was the latest in a long line of controversial incidents involving Boruc on and off the field this season. In January, Strachan revealed he would have a word with the erratic Pole after another gaffe had handed Dundee a shock opener in a Homecoming Scottish Cup tie at Parkhead. The following month the former Legia Warsaw keeper was involved in a highly-publicised and unseemly dressing room bust-up with Aiden McGeady, which Strachan struggled to smooth over. The Celtic boss, however, has no fears about his keeper ahead of the SPL with Hamilton at Parkhead. "You did see the bobble (at Windsor Park), that was truly horrific, but that's life at the moment," he said. "But he is fine, he really is fine. "I was very pleased when I spoke to him and maybe he needed that wee break. "He's very strong minded. He knows where he is now, he is a massive celebrity in Poland and he has to deal with that. "I don't do the rankings, I just know that he is a very good player." Hoops striker Georgios Samaras added his weight to his manager's backing of Boruc by claiming the Poland keeper remained "world class" and would not be affected in the SPL run-in. "Artur is a world-class goalkeeper," said the Greece international. "He is a big part of the team. "I really don't care about his lifestyle or what he does outside the club, that's his life. "At the moment he is playing well and he will help us. "He is looking well, fit, focused and ready for a clean sheet tomorrow. "When you are a goalkeeper it is easy to be a hero and easy to make a tragic mistake to get beat but I don't think it will affect him. "Artur can handle the situation. "He has the heart and mind to play the last nine games to win the title." With so many players away on international duty, Strachan claimed to have only 15 minutes of preparation time to plan for the visit of Billy Reid's side. He said: "Scott McDonald got in at 6am this morning so he went straight to his bed and Aiden McGeady popped in to tell us he was fine. "But because so many players have been away, we've had 15 minutes to put a shape together and put some ideas in the players' minds. "It's not a lot but you have to accept that when you have a lot of good players in your team. "We played Accies earlier in the season and they tried to play open football but after a couple of results at that time, Billy decided to redesign his team and make them more difficult to beat. "He did that and changed his formation which makes it very difficult to score against them."

Source: Team_Talk