Andy Robertson believes Poland are Scotland’s rivals for a place on the plane to France next year.
The Hull City defender, who is in his first season in the English Premier League after a successful move from Dundee United last summer, has backed Group D rivals, world champions Germany, to qualify for the European championship finals.
But the 21-year-old insists Gordon Strachan’s side can pip Poland, who are one point ahead of Scotland at the halfway stage of the campaign, in the race to join the Germans across the English Channel in 2016.
He said: “Germany let the group open up more than people expected when they lost to Poland, so everyone feels they have a chance.
“The Germans were not at their best to start the group but I believe they’ll pick up.
“They are not World Cup winners for nothing and I still expect them to have enough in the second half of the campaign to win the group. But Poland still have to come to our place and we still have to play Ireland in our next game.”
Victory in Dublin in June against the Republic of Ireland would dent Irish hopes of qualifying and Robertson believes the Scots are capable of completing the double against Martin O’Neill’s side.
He said: “The next game is Ireland now and we’ll go there in the summer looking to get a win and take a step closer to where we want to be.
“That’s going to be a massive game for the group because if we can win it would be huge.
“It’s all there for everyone and hopefully we can pick up a win in Ireland over the summer and take things on from there again.”
Robertson has adapted to international football with ease but insists he is not ready to consider himself a first-team regular under Strachan.
The Glaswegian said: “I don’t think of myself as the first choice for Scotland, definitely not.
“Craig Forsyth is a very good player, he’s been excellent for Derby and was very good against Northern Ireland on Wednesday.
“So, it’s a fight for the jersey and we will bounce off each other. It’s a good thing because we want to be pushing each other to see who gets into the team.
“It’s healthy for Scotland to have competition and both of us will be determined to push the other one hard every time.”