Christophe Berra has acknowledged that he owes his recall to the Scotland squad to the standard of his performances for Ipswich.
Former Wolves defender Berra had to settle for a space on the bench after his free transfer move in the summer but since securing a place in Mick McCarthy’s side he has enjoyed a 12-game uninterrupted run.
That, in turn, has seen him recalled by Scotland boss Gordon Strachan and he earned senior cap number 28 as a late substitute for Everton striker Steven Naismith in the recent 1-0 win in Norway.
Berra said: "It was great to be back in the squad for the games against the USA and Norway but I was disappointed I didn’t play more. I only got on for the last minute or so in Norway but I know I have to work my way back in.
"When I was at Wolves I was a regular in the starting 11 but when I didn’t play over the last three months of last season for Wolves I dropped out. I won’t be the first and I won’t be the last person that happens to.
"I’ve just got to be patient and bide my time then hopefully I will get a chance if the manager rates me. If not — and football is all about opinions — I’ll just have to get on with it.”
Berra hopes to once again cement his place in his country’s senior squad at a time when they appear to be making genuine progress under former Coventry, Southampton, Celtic and Middlesbrough boss Strachan.
He added: "Scotland have done very well in their last four or five games and it’s all credit to the players because it’s a squad game. We’ve got several more friendlies before the qualifiers start again and that’s really how we will be judged.
"We’ll have to wait and see when the qualifiers start because that’s when we will know how far we have come. Everyone will be thinking we have a great chance of qualifying for the Euros because the format has changed and more teams will be involved.
"But from my experience of international football it doesn’t matter who you get in your group because there will always be difficult games and you can’t take any team for granted. It’s just like the Championship because if you don’t turn up or don’t play well you will get punished.”