Much has been made of the Olympics conundrum faced by Scottish players who are offered the chance to represent Great Britain in the summer Games, but St Johnstone’s Canadian striker Marcus Haber has revealed he has a 2012 dilemma of his own.
There has been a warning for the likes of James Forrest and Steven Naismith that they would face a backlash from the Tartan Army if they accepted a call-up by GB coach Stuart Pearce.
That’s not something Haber has to worry about with his national team. However, like the Scots, he will have to weigh up whether it’s worth the risk of putting his first-team place with his club in jeopardy. It’s a decision he’ll have to make soon, as Canada have Olympic qualifiers in March.
The former West Brom forward said: ”It would be amazing to play at the Olympics. It will be tough for us to get there though.
”The qualifying is a round robin format with three games and then there’s a semi-final and a final. I think it runs from March 22 to April 2, so I’d be missing games here. I think it might be Celtic and Hearts. It will be a tough decision to have to make.
”Only two countries go through from our qualifying group which includes Mexico and the United States, but it would be an amazing opportunity.
”To be honest I haven’t made my decision to go or not, even if I’m released. Keeping your place in the team here is tough enough as it is. If you’re in the team you don’t want to give your place up because you don’t know if you’ll get it back.
”If the gaffer tells you your spot is secure then that’s one thing, but I don’t think anyone at the club can say that.”
Explaining the pull of the Olympics to a Canadian, Haber added: ”It’s always been a dream to play at the Olympics and obviously it would be right round the corner for me this year! It’s not as big a deal as the World Cup, but growing up I played a lot of other sports so I’ve always followed the Olympics quite a bit.
”Canada has always been heavily involved in the athletics in the summer and also the Winter Olympics. It would be great to represent my country.”
Haber doesn’t believe there’s a one-size-fits-all solution for footballers to the Olympics issue.
He said: ”I’ve heard a little bit about the dilemma for the Scottish players. Every individual has to weigh up their own options, I think. You have to look at your priorities and what’s best for you as a player.
”If any player had the choice they would probably play for team Great Britain but sometimes it’s tough because it’s the club that employs you and that’s what a lot of players will see as their first priority.
”At least I don’t have to worry about the whole Scottish/British thing. That bit’s easy for me.”