Injured Tierney left out of Scotland squad for World Cup play-off

Arsenal defender Kieran Tierney, has been left out of Scotland’s squad for next month’s World Cup play-off semi-final against Ukraine due to knee surgery.

On Monday, head coach Steve Clarke named a 28-man squad for the June 1 match in Glasgow, which will be followed by the start of their UEFA Nations League campaign.

If Scotland defeats Ukraine, they will travel to Cardiff on June 5 to face Wales for a place in this year’s World Cup finals in Qatar, which begin in November.

They host Armenia in the Nations League on June 8 and travel to Yerevan for the return match on June 14, with a game against Ireland in Dublin sandwiched in between.

Tierney, 24, has not played since featuring for Scotland against Austria on March 29 after hurting his knee in training, meaning he missed the end of the Premier League season.

Nathan Patterson, 20, of Everton, is also in the squad despite having not played since the Austria match due to an ankle injury that required surgery.

Scotland, ranked 39th in FIFA, has not competed in a World Cup since the 1998 tournament in France.