Scotland’s national football team enters a critical phase in their World Cup qualification campaign, with captain Andy Robertson expressing optimism despite recent performances that have fallen short of expectations. The team has secured just four victories in their last 16 matches, raising concerns about their ability to compete at the highest level.
This is underlined by the failure of the Scottish national squad to win at home. They’ve won only one out of nine previous fixtures at Hampden Park. This string of poor performance has ramped up that pressure as they head into playoff qualifier matches against strong teams. Scotland’s next match will come against Denmark on September 5. Then, they’ll head back out on the road to face Belarus on September 8. They will then welcome Greece to Yerevan on October 9, before a home tie with Belarus again on October 12. November will feature what looks to be another tough test against Greece away, leading up to a possible climax at home to Denmark on November 18.
Andy Robertson, who has captained Scotland at two European Championships, has admitted a huge home void must be filled. He acknowledged that the team’s recent performance has not been “up to scratch.” Nevertheless, he is optimistic about their chances to qualify for the World Cup.
“But if we get back to doing what we’re good at, back to our basics, back to our basic principles, then I do believe we can give anyone a game.” – Andy Robertson
Scotland’s future has looked bleak in recent weeks. Their most recent game was a worrying 3-1 home loss to Iceland at Hampden Park. The team responded in a big way with championship-level swagger. They hadn’t really proven much with their 4-0 home victory over the world’s 205th ranked team, Liechtenstein. At least five international debuts were made on the pitch during this exciting match, making it a historic moment for many players.
Among the debutants was 16 year-old Lennon Miller, who caught the eye on his first start. In the final friendly against Liechtenstein, the forwards were able to bust out of their scoring slump. Nothing could have boosted this team’s morale more than scoring goals! In contrast to the debut from Cieran Slicker which turned out to be “a debut to forget” against Iceland.
Scotland’s aspirations to qualify for the World Cup are significant as they aim to become the first men’s team from the country to reach this prestigious tournament since 1998. Previous encounters with top teams have shown their potential. Scotland has held Portugal to a draw and achieved victories against both Croatia and Spain.
With important World Cup qualifiers ahead, the players know the challenge ahead. Even with the disappointing loss of late, those in Robertson’s faith and vision for what this team could be are hard to miss. In short, the forthcoming fixtures could prove crucial in deciding whether Scotland can secure a place in the qualification play-offs.
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