STEVE CLARKE has flown to the USA on a final scouting trip to search for a top class World Cup training base.
The Scotland boss is desperate to secure elite facilities and hotel accommodation for his squad at this summer’s finals.
And that’s seen Clarke jet across the Atlantic for another personal look at the options available before a final decision is rubber-stamped a week today.
Scotland face Haiti and Morocco in Boston on June 14 and June 19 before a mouthwatering clash with Brazil in Miami on June 24.
Clarke originally hoped to set up camp close to the venue for the first two group game fixtures.
But the options suggested by Fifa hadn’t met Scotland’s requirements and alternatives are now being considered.
There’s a brand new £100million training facility currently being built by the New York Red Bulls franchise in New Jersey which has been looked at.
But the likelihood is that one of the bigger nations – possibly rivals Brazil – will land that base.
Clarke is still weighing up a camp in Charlotte, North Carolina, even though that would require his squad to get flights to and from the matches.
The Scotland boss is also running the rule on facilities in Florida where he plans to take his squad on a hot-weather training camp a fortnight before the World Cup kicks off.
Scotland are set to finalise their friendly games before the finals.
Japan are being lined up for a clash at Hampden in March with another game against the Ivory Coast at Everton’s new Hill Dickinson Stadium.
There will then be two bounce games in June – against Curacao at Hampden in a send-off game – before a clash against Peru in the USA just before the World Cup kicks off.
With just five months to go until the Scots’ return to grand stage gets underway in the US, Clarke will no doubt be in constant thought regarding who’ll make his final squad.
One man who many fans would like to see make the cut is Harvey Barnes.
Capped once by England in a friendly, the winger has been in electric form for Newcastle this season.
Barnes, 28, bagged a remarkable winner TWELVE minutes into added time as the Toon beat Leeds 4-3 in an incredible game last night.
The former Leicester man also scored Newcastle’s first goal of the game to make it 1-1.
Barnes has scored nine goals in all competitions this season.
Speaking last month, Clarke revealed he was preparing to sound out Barnes ahead of the March friendlies.
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