Managers defend European record

Strachan and Smith said Scottish football was in good shape

The managers of Scotland's two biggest clubs say criticism of European results this season is wide of the mark.

Motherwell's Uefa Cup exit at the hands of Nancy followed Celtic's 1-0 defeat by Villarreal in the Champions League.

And Rangers, Queen of the South and Hibernian all crashed out of Europe in a run of 10 ties without a win.

But Celtic manager Gordon Strachan said clubs must take the rough with the smooth - a view echoed by Rangers boss Walter Smith.

Celtic are second bottom of Group E in the Champions League, with one point from two games.

They trail group leaders Manchester United and Villarreal by three points.

Motherwell's defeat at Fir Park on Thursday means Scottish sides have played in 10 European ties this season without a win.

It's just a period when we haven't done so great - that's life, it happens Celtic manager Gordon Strachan

Nevertheless, Strachan said it was not all doom and gloom for Scotland's clubs.

"Do you want to get too disappointed with this season or do you want to go back to last year?" he said.

"It was the same bunch of players and we were all thinking 'this is absolutely fantastic'. You get seasons like this, that's the way it goes.

"Being the negative west coast of Scotland that we are, we will get down instead of saying that over the last couple of years we have done very, very well."

The Celtic manager added: "It's just a period when we haven't done so great. That's life, it happens sometimes and you have to take it as a coach."

Rangers manager Walter Smith, who watched his side lose to FBK Kaunas in the Champions League qualifier earlier this term, also called for a more sober assessment.

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"Last season we were saying we had the best season for a long, long time," Smith said.

"It happens in football sometimes, that you get a run of disappointing results.

"Last season we were looking at a situation where Celtic had a terrific run in the Champions League, we managed to qualify out the sections, Aberdeen got to the knockout sections of the UEFA Cup. We were saying it was the best we have had.

"The truth is the margin of error in all these games is very tight, and sometimes people jump to the wrong conclusions."

Former Scotland skipper Paul Lambert believes Scottish clubs will lag behind their foreign counterparts until training regimes change.

Motherwell manager Mark McGhee admitted his men were some way short of their Uefa Cup conquerors Nancy, who are in mid-table in Ligue 1.