STEVE Clarke has expressed confidence the Scottish FA have put every possible safeguard in place to prevent Scotland’s players contracting coronavirus during their trip to the Czech Republic.

Ian Maxwell, the SFA chief executive, revealed on Saturday that several concerned clubs had contacted him regarding the wellbeing of their footballers ahead of the Nations League game in Olomouc this evening.

The Football Association of the Czech Republic announced the Group B2 fixture had been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic late on Friday night.

Czech preparations for their match with Slovakia in Bratislava were thrown into disarray last week when a member of their backroom team tested positive and two key players were asked to self-isolate.

UEFA intervened and the game will now go ahead as originally scheduled – but the home side will use a completely new squad and there will be different coaches in charge.

Speaking before he flew out to the Czech Republic with the Scotland squad, Clarke stressed that strict guidelines had been followed throughout the international break and every safety measure put in place.

“It is very important that everyone follows protocol,” he said. “Around the camp it has been very good. There has been no real contact with anyone outside our group, our squad. For us it has been reasonably straightforward.

“It might be a bit more intense when we go away, obviously travelling on the flight and the buses and when we have to have the masks on and in and around the hotel.

“We have our own floor and we will take our own chef. Listen, we take every precaution to make sure everyone can be safe as they possibly can.”

Clarke, whose team will take on Israel in the Euro 2020 play-off semi-final at Hampden next month, defended the decision to stage international matches during the coronavirus pandemic.

“In general, life now has changed for everyone,” he said. “I don’t think we can sit here and moan about following different procedures because we are in a very strange place for the human race at the moment.

“There are millions around the world affected by this virus. We just have to adapt. Hopefully over a period of time we will get more used to it. Hopefully over a period of time we will find a solution or a vaccine to the virus that will get us back to what everyone would say was a more normal time and place.

“I think football had to come back. Industry had to come back. We are part of industry. We are part of the world. We cannot make everyone sit in the house forever. There comes a time when you have to start lifting restrictions and allow people to get back to normal life. We are just a part of that.”