SCOTLAND manager Craig Brown said yesterday that the withdrawal of Brazil striker Romario from the World Cup through injury was as big a blow to them as the loss of Gary McAllister was from his own side.

Romario, who broke down in tears as he announced he would miss the tournament, would have lined up with Inter-Milan striker Ronaldo in a mouth-watering forward partnership in the first game against Scotland in six days' time.

Brown said that the loss of a player like Romario would be a huge blow to the Brazilians because of his special playing relationship with Ronaldo, and his withdrawal would give Scotland a psychological boost. Indeed, he went on to say that he felt his Scots were capable of causing ''a major upset.''

His comments came as Brown finalised his own squad and the SFA faxed the already confirmed 22 Scottish players to FIFA, the names sent being the ones who returned from the American tour.

At the same time as his striking partner was withdrawing from the World Cup, Ronaldo talked of how Brazil could not be complacent against Scotland, and believed John Collins could be the danger man against them.

As he did so, Brown analysed the impact Romario's withdrawal will have on Ronaldo.

Brown said: ''The one-twos and understanding between them is terrific and they were excellent when I saw them together. They were going to be a major danger but it is clear Brazil have a great array of talent in reserve.

''Romario being out gives us a little psychological boost because any team losing a world-class player like him must suffer. We had a similar experience with Gary McAllister, one of our outstanding players, so things have evened out a bit now.''

Brown said he expected that Romario would be replaced next week by Edmundo, who already is in the squad, and whom he described as quicker than Romario but not as prolific a goalscorer.

From a player's perspective midfielder Paul Lambert said that, despite Romario's withdrawal, it was clear that Brazil had so much strength in depth that they would put a strong side out in the opening game.

''It's no problem to me if Romario is there or not, as whoever they bring in will be a good player,'' said Lambert. ''It's true that Romario and Ronaldo had a good understanding between them. However, when you have players of such individual quality like Ronaldo, he will hit it off with whatever player is brought in beside him.''

Lambert said, during his time in Germany, he had played against Emerson Ferriera from German club Bayer Leverkusen, who was drafted into Brazil's squad yesterday to replace Romario, and described him as a strong-running midfield man.

The decision to call in Emerson was based on the feeling that Brazil already have six players in the squad who could play up front. Manager Mario Zagallo said Emerson could provide back-up for Dunga or Cesar Sampaio in the middle of the park, as both of them had been carrying injuries.

The withdrawal of Romario is the latest in the line of top-class players who will not grace the World Cup in France, a list which includes Paul Gascoigne of England and Andy Goram of Scotland.

An emotional Romario, one of Brazil's top men in their victory in the last World Cup in America, said having the chance to represent his country snatched away from him was difficult to take.

''This is the biggest disappointment of my life but doesn't mean I won't play for Brazil again,'' he said. ''I had been hoping against hope I would be fit but I had to agree with the decision to withdraw me from the squad.''

He felt that even until a few days ago he would recover in time for the start of the tournament. However, Zagallo, his deputy Zico, and the team doctor collectively agreed that an injury to his right calf muscle incurred during training would take at least a month to heal.

Romario has already played in two World Cups in a career which saw his talent propel him from the slums of Rio de Janeiro to a glittering lifestyle. His first big-money transfer, for more than #1.5m, took him from Vasco da Gama of Brazil to PSV Eindhoven, where he played under former England manager Bobby Robson. He then signed for Barcelona in 1993 before returning to Brazil with Flamengo two years later. He was on his travels again soon afterwards when he signed for Valencia in Spain before returning to Flamengo.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo talked about the dangers of meeting Scotland, pinpointing Collins as the man who could turn the game for the Scots. The Inter-Milan striker has insisted the South Americans will be in for a testing match when they begin their defence of the trophy.

''I have not heard of too many of the Scottish players, but one man I know all about is John Collins. He plays for Monaco and is technically gifted, one of the best midfielders in Europe.

''Collins is a big danger to us and I know he will have to be man-marked carefully. Scotland are hard opponents for us and the eyes of the world will be watching, and they will want to shock everyone.

''Normally, we would win against Scotland, because we have more quality, but in the first game nothing is certain. We all know to expect a difficult game.''

SCOTLAND SQUAD NUMBERS

Goalkeepers: 1, Jim Leighton (Aberdeen); 12, Neil Sullivan (Wimbledon); 21, Jonathan Gould (Celtic).

Defenders: 3, Tom Boyd (Celtic); 5, Colin Hendry (Blackburn); 4, Colin Calderwood (Tottenham); 22, Christian Dailly (Derby); 16, David Weir (Hearts); 18, Matt Elliott (Leicester); 6, Tosh McKinlay (Celtic); 19, Derek Whyte (Aberdeen).

Midfielders: 8, Craig Burley (Celtic); 14, Paul Lambert (Celtic); 11, John Collins (Monaco); 2, Jackie McNamara (Celtic); 17, Billy McKinlay (Blackburn); 15, Scot Gemmill (Nottingham Forest).

Strikers: 7, Kevin Gallacher (Blackburn); 9, Gordon Durie (Rangers); 10, Darren Jackson (Celtic); 20, Scott Booth (Borussia Dortmund); 13, Simon Donnelly (Celtic).