Scotland hatch plan to stop Bale

Assistant manager Mark McGhee says Scotland have a plan to deal with Gareth Bale when they face Wales in Glasgow on Friday.

Gordon Strachan’s second in command is confident that the hosts can stop the winger and insists that they will carry their own threat as well.

“I’ve been watching a lot of Gareth Bale recently. We will have a plan to deal with him but we are the team and will exert our own pressure,” McGhee told reporters.

“I’ve seen teams who have dealt with Bale’s quality. I don’t think we will be man-marking him.

“We will ask players to do what they are good at. It’s not a case of moulding into a rigid system.”

On-loan Hull City forward George Boyd and Dundee United’s Gary Mackay-Steven are both expected to feature in Friday’s clash and are confident their abilities to thwart Bale.

“I think it’s important not to just concentrate on Gareth Bale,” Boyd said.

“I’ve played against him before but we also have good attacking options.”

Mackay-Steven echoed the views, arguing: “As a winger, I appreciate how good Bale is but we need to focus on what we can do.”

Scotland are bottom of Group A with two points after four games, while Wales are just one point ahead of them in fifth.