A further indication of the raising of standards within the Scotland camp was delivered by the lack of triumphalism among Steve Clarke and his players as a World Cup play-off berth was secured. The Scottish support were jubilant after the 2-0 success in Moldova which earned second place in Group F, but Clarke had already turned his mind to the challenge ahead. Namely, progressing through two games next March that would seal Scotland’s place in a World Cup for the first time since 1998.
“We are not going to celebrate getting to a play-off,” Clarke said. “It is a measure of the improvement in the team and the squad. But we want to go to Qatar. When we get to March we will save the celebrations for then hopefully. ‘Job done’ is to qualify for Qatar.”
Hampden Park is likely to host a party on Monday evening when Denmark visit, but Clarke has an alternative mindset. Scotland will almost certainly need at least a draw from the runaway group winners to earn what could be a crucial seeded berth in the play-offs. That would mean a home game in at least the first of those March fixtures. “We need probably something from the game on Monday to be seeded but even without something on Monday night, we have to win two more matches,” added Scotland’s manager.
“We want to finish well. It will be a full house at Hampden. We want to finish the campaign well. If we can get one or three points on Monday it should secure a seeding. We relaxed and enjoyed ourselves on the flight back – without alcohol – but we will get ourselves ready for Monday. We will enjoy the fact we have had a good campaign up to now and we want to finish it. We are now two matches away from Qatar. We are getting closer.”
Clarke’s job is rendered trickier by the ridiculous ruling that means suspensions and yellow cards carry into the play-offs. Just two bookings incur a ban. Eight Scotland players – Scott McTominay, Stephen O’Donnell, Billy Gilmour, Andy Robertson, Jack Hendry, Kevin Nisbet, Che Adams and John McGinn – are sitting on a single yellow card. Clarke is understood to be privately unhappy about the rule but in public he is circumspect. He will have to balance competitiveness and the potential for an upcoming selection headache against the Danes.
Nathan Patterson will serve a suspension against Denmark after collecting a booking in Moldova. The young full-back, who cannot command regular game time at Rangers but has been targeted by Everton, scored a terrific goal amid a generally excellent display on Friday evening. “I thought he started a little bit slowly, to be honest,” said Clarke of Patterson. “But he is not playing enough football as a young player developing and this is not a criticism of anyone. He is not getting enough minutes on the pitch. It took him a little time to find his feet in the game but once he did, he played all right, didn’t he?”
Clarke is in that rare position of being a Scotland manager adored by supporters. For so long, it felt as if the role should carry a health warning. Clarke changed that dynamic entirely by taking his country to the delayed Euro 2020 finals. He even broke with his own tradition by granting a request from the Scottish fans for a wave in the closing minutes of the Moldova clash.
“I get nervous when I do that,” Clarke said with a smile. “I did it once as a younger manager somewhere, I can’t remember where. And we conceded a goal straightaway. I would ask the Tartan Army if they want a wave, can they wait until after the game. I actually turned to the bench: ‘Do you think I should wave?’ They were good, it was fantastic to see. They are amazing.
“I spoke to one boy outside and he had jumped on a plane 22 hours earlier in America to come and watch the game. Twenty-two hours travelling. To be honest, he looked as fresh as a coat of paint. I would have been dead after that. So that’s a measure of the guys that want to be here. Thankfully we gave them a good night and they can enjoy themselves.”