Former Scotland winger Eddie Gray has told setanta.com that he believes the country needs greater focus on technical skills.
The former Leeds United manager, 61, was speaking at the Carnegie Futebol de Salao Cup – a nationwide competition that sees sixth-form and college students play for a place in the annual final at Leeds Met Carnegie – and he feels that Scotland will only produce great players again once the coaching shifts focus towards ball control.
"We aren't producing the Baxters, the Dalglishs, the Sounesses and it's a real shame as, when you look back over the list of great Scottish players of the past, it's extensive,” he told setanta.com.
"For any aspiring players, mastery of the ball is the basic requirement, and this needs practice before you can move on to anything else.”
The Carnegie FDS Cup is jointly run by Leeds Met Carnegie and the Brazilian Soccer Schools, the world's largest football coaching organisation which has already helped nurture the talents of players such as Theo Walcott and Micah Richards, and Gray is impressed with the approach.
"Futebol de Salao is a quick and exciting game,” he said.
“The players showed real skill and their enthusiasm and talent was outstanding.
"I was fortunate to grow up with a great coach, but the best way for children to develop is to let them play with the ball on an individual basis and to master it.
“Only later should coaches introduce more advanced tactics.”