Jack Hendry has pulled out of the Scotland squad for the upcoming double-header through injury.

The Celtic youngster follows Fulham captain Tom Cairney in withdrawing from Alex McLeish's squad to face Belgium and Albania.

With defensive mainstays Scott McKenna and Christophe Berra sidelined, Hendry had been looking to cement his place at the back for his country after impressing on the Scots' Americas summer tour.

But he has been now also been ruled out of action, reducing Scotland's defensive options even further.

John Souttar and Charlie Mulgrew are the only two recognised centre-backs currently in the squad, although McLeish has hinted Celtic full-back Kieran Tierney could also be deployed in the middle of the back-line.

Hendry came under scrutiny as the Scottish champions exited Champions League qualifying earlier this month.

But, speaking upon the announcement of his squad, McLeish had backed the 23-year-old to thrive in a Scotland jersey.

"Jack played well in the South 
American trip," he said. "I understand he didn't travel last week because of an injury so maybe he's been playing with that for a few weeks.

"Who knows? We'll find out when he joins us.

"When you play with Celtic and Rangers you need a strong mentality.

"The irony is he got criticised for losing a goal in Europe - but we then had a fantastic report on him from the Thistle game.

"The tiniest mistake at Rangers and Celtic can hurt players and make them lose their confidence but I think Jack has the bottle."