Norwich City defender Grant Hanley has pulled out of Scotland’s squad for the friendlies against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland.
The 32-year-old was recalled for the games on 22 and 26 March after a long lay-off with an Achilles injury.
Hanley returned to Steve Clarke’s squad after playing eight times for the Canaries this year.
The centre-backs still in the squad are Scott McKenna, Jack Hendry, Liam Cooper, Ryan Porteous and John Souttar.
Kieran Tierney is also often used as the left-sided central defender in Clarke’s preferred 3-5-2 formation and no replacement for Hanley has been called up.
“We’ve got enough cover in those positions so I think we’re quite happy with what we’ve got,” said assistant manager John Carver.
The Dumfries-born defender missed Norwich’s last two matches in the Championship after limping out of their defeat at Middlesbrough earlier this month.
Norwich manager David Wagner said after Saturday’s win at Stoke that Hanley and the club had decided to leave him out of team training “because he is not as explosive and as sharp as he was when he was at his best”.
“He is a very physical centre-half,” added Wagner. “If he is physically on his best then he is one of the best, or the best, in the division. We have to make sure, and he feels the same, to get him back to that level.
“We have given him a proper individual programme in the next couple of weeks, or however long it will take, to get back to that level.
“Even if we are happy that his Achilles is fine, we have to get him back to the explosive, sharp Grant Hanley he was before his injury.”
Hanley’s withdrawal means he will not have played for the national team for more than a year – the last of his 48 caps was against Spain in March 2023 – by the time Clarke selects his squad for the European Championships.
“He’s a steady, experienced player. He’s good in the squad. He’s a player that I call a man. You know what you’re going to get from Grant,” Clarke told the Scottish FA website when he announced his squad.”
Clarke’s side play in Amsterdam on Friday before Northern Ireland come to Hampden Park four days later, with both games kicking off at 19:45 GMT.
Scotland will complete their preparation for Euro 2024 with friendlies against Gibraltar and Finland in early June before opening the tournament against hosts Germany.
Scotland squad
Goalkeepers: Zander Clark, Craig Gordon (both Hearts), Angus Gunn (Norwich), Liam Kelly (Motherwell)
Defenders: Liam Cooper (Leeds), Jack Hendry (Al-Ettifaq), Scott McKenna (Copenhagen), Nathan Patterson (Everton), Ryan Porteous (Watford), Anthony Ralston (Celtic), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), John Souttar (Rangers), Greg Taylor (Celtic), Kieran Tierney (Real Sociedad)
Midfielders: Stuart Armstrong (Southampton), Ryan Christie (Bournemouth), Lewis Ferguson (Bologna), Billy Gilmour (Brighton), John McGinn (Aston Villa), Kenny McLean (Norwich), Scott McTominay (Manchester United)
Forwards: Che Adams (Southampton), Lyndon Dykes (QPR), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts)
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