Thursday 21 November 2019 20:58, UK
Scott Brown has called on the Scottish Football Association to postpone league fixtures to give Scotland a better chance of winning their Euro 2020 play-offs.
Steve Clarke's side have not yet qualified for next year's Euros, but they have the lifeline of potentially getting in through the play-offs in March.
Brown, who has retired from international football, says the SFA and the Scottish Professional Football League must come to an agreement in order to give Scotland their best chance of featuring in a first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup.
"I'm sure the SFA and the clubs will help [Clarke] as much as they possibly can," Brown said.
"It all depends on the SFA, because if we've got games to play we need to make sure we play them and we need to make sure we play our strongest eleven. So that all comes down to the SFA now.
"It's a huge occasion and I think we need to make sure we try and give Scotland as much help as we possibly can.
"Whether it's resting the lads for five or six days before that so there's not too many games, there's no injuries and he's got a full squad to pick from.
"It's been a long time since we've been to a Euros or a World Cup so I think we've got to put [the league] on the back burner.
"Whether it's for a week or four or five days, we need to make sure we give Steve the best options possible."
Leigh Griffiths could be available for Scotland in those play-offs. The Hoops striker has been out since a 3-1 victory over Hearts in late August due to personal problems which were followed by niggling injuries and a virus.
However, the Scotland forward scored a double for Celtic reserves against Stenhousemuir in a friendly at Lennoxtown on Wednesday, and Brown insists a fully-fit Griffiths would provide a fillip for both club and country.
Speaking at the SEC Armadillo in Glasgow before the 'An Evening with Broony' event, the midfielder said: "We need Leigh to be back fit as a fiddle, working hard and back to doing what he does best: scoring goals.
"Whether it's for us, for Scotland, it'd be a great boost and it would be a good boost for us as well.
"When he played for Scotland he was incredible. I enjoyed playing with him.
"You saw the way he played against England, those two free-kicks [in 2017's 2-2 draw]. It wasn't just about the free-kicks, it was about how you control two centre-halves.
"We all know what his left foot can do anyway, we know he is going to put the ball in the back of the net but it's just about making sure that he is as fit as he possibly can [be]."
