The Scotland boss has named his 26-man squad but there’s no place for McBurnie or Lennon Miller

Scotland boss Steve Clarke

Steve Clarke froze Oli McBurnie out of his World Cup squad – then criticised the striker for going public with his Scotland grievances.

The national team boss – who revealed his future WILL be sorted before he boards the plane for America on May 31 – named his 26-man group on Tuesday for the tournament in America but there was no place for the 18-goal Hull City frontman.

McBurnie recently revealed he called Clarke in March to query why he wasn’t included for friendly games against Japan and Ivory Coast after his stellar season in the Championship.

The Scotland gaffer says those conversations should have remained between the pair.

And Clarke – who called up Southampton forward Ross Stewart ahead of McBurnie – insists he only picks players he knows he can trust.

He said: “I thought that was a private conversation, to be honest. He (McBurnie) should not have gone to the media.

“It’s just the way I work, I tend to stick to players I’ve had before. I trust them.

Findlay Curtis celebrates his goal

“They know what I expect from them and that’s it. It’s a natural selection process – natural in my head, anyway – but maybe not in everybody else’s.”

In April, McBurnie revealed he spoke to Clarke about being left out of the World Cup warm-up games.

He said: “I rang the manager when his last squad was getting announced, just to kind of see his feelings on things.

“He said to me that he builds his squad on loyalty and that Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes have done really well for him.

“So he sees those two ahead of me.”

But Stewart was a surprise inclusion in the Scotland selection after a four-year absence from the international scene.

Clarke insists he deserves his spot after finding form for his club ahead of Saints’ Championship play-off final against McBurnie and Hull at Wembley this Saturday.

He said: “It’s a good story. Ross obviously was in my squad a few years ago and showed that he could come up to this level.

“He then had a terrible run of injuries. But this season, certainly from January onwards, he’s hit a rich vein of form where he’s shown that he can score big goals in big games.

“I’d probably reference the Arsenal game in the FA Cup where he showed he can have an impact on games of that level.

“The World Cup will be a very high level as well. He’s a striker in form so I decided to add him to the group.

“For Ross, it’s just form. He’s been in the group before so the vast majority of players will know him.

“He fitted in very well the last time he was in it. You know I put a lot of importance on characters within the group.

“Hopefully we’re going to be away for four or five weeks so you need good relationships with all the players. It’s very important we have that.”

Meanwhile, Clarke is adamant that his future as Scotland boss will be finalised before his squad leaves for the US.

His contract expires at the end of the tournament and, as yet, no agreement is in place between Clarke and the SFA to extend his deal beyond the World Cup.

But the manager insists it will be clarified before the team leaves next Sunday for their pre-tournament training camp in Fort Lauderdale.

Clarke’s team is gearing up for Group C games against Haiti, Morocco and Brazil next month.

When quizzed on his future, the 62-year-old – who has now led Scotland to three major tournaments – says he expects it to be resolved before they land in the States.

Clarke said: “I don’t think this is the day for speaking about me. Let’s speak about the players.

“There will be plenty of time to talk about me, for good or bad. But I understand why you ask the question.

“I am pretty sure it will be (sorted before boarding the plane). Will it be settled? Hopefully, that would be the plan.”

The inclusion of 29-year-old Stewart was the biggest surprise in Clarke’s World Cup selection.

Rangers youngster Findlay Curtis was picked after impressing on loan at Kilmarnock this season, while veteran keeper Craig Gordon was recalled.

Udinese midfielder Lennon Miller was omitted along with the likes of Ross McCrorie, Connor Barron, Andy Irvine and injured Tommy Conway.