Didn’t take our chances which was our major downfall.
We had plenty of opportunities to score and win this game but fluffed our lines every time.
We had plenty of opportunities to score and win this game but fluffed our lines every time.
Scotland National Team Discussion
- Thread starter SilentWitness
- Start date
say it like it is. you scotched it right up.
Dykes is absolute turd.
I was hoping you would win today but that was bad.
I was hoping you would win today but that was bad.
Strange post, you expected him to be fit? Why?
Well that was shit
Looks every bit a player that played for Livingston. This unfound optimism with the national team this year has been really grating.
Always happy to see the bams that follow the national team looking absolutely dejected on TV.
yep, beat ourselves today.
played far too emotionally at times too which impacted us and makes me really worried for Friday.
Why?
Yea, we were anxious and Clarke got some decisions wrong. Didn't take our chances either but I didn't think we played too badly truthfully.
I don't get how you choose a mid-table Championship striker over a Premier League striker.
They played well. Finishing was shite though.
Probably the first time I've seriously questioned some of Clarke's decisions.
Agree, the overall performance wasn't too bad, but I would take a result over performance right now.
For sure, and Friday is massive now (as if it wasn't already). Adams, Paterson and Tierney (if fit) all to come in for me.
I agree in terms of these changes.
The national team has a very conservative approach, much like the Tartan Army.
Eff every last one of them.
Yep, pretty much nailed it in that 1st line.
We were the architects of our own downfall today.
Agree with those changes. I'd also be tempted to get Gilmour in for a bit more composure and ball retention in midfield. Push McGinn further up. Imagine, as a Scot, getting your first international start against England at Wembley at his age. Don't think he will though.
It's always the same with Scotland. Victim mentality, always defining ourselves as "Scottish" rather than "winners". The rugby team has managed to shrug it off recently, but it hangs around everything else up here.
Robertson I thought was brilliant. You just need someone on the end of his product who doesn't think twice to stick it in the net. Clinical is the word.
Pockets of brilliance from a select few players, you just need a few more in the right places. Made for a good game to watch! (as a neutral)
Pockets of brilliance from a select few players, you just need a few more in the right places. Made for a good game to watch! (as a neutral)
Woeful performance from Dykes. Is he usually that bad?
The slo-mo of the Scottish keeper onion-bagging himself is quite something.
I think they will free us up and be less shackled.
It would be awesome and the dreamer in me would love to see it and I'd pick him too. Can't see it though. Dykes was awful but the decision to play Christie confused me, he has been rubbish for ages. Adams should start every game.
Mind boggling.
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Definitely. Gilmour would have been much more natural in that no6 position. Our build up was really sluggish and we couldn't get it moved through the midfield.
Would be a nice parallel coming in for his first competitive start with Barry Ferguson whose first starts were the England play-offs for Euro 2000. He was man of the match at Wembley too.
Fantastic player he was aswell Bazza
No idea why the Scottish keeper was so far out , big mistake.
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Gets better every time I see it
Fantastic innit
Stunning goal but why the keeper was almost in the centre circle is beyond me. Just asking for trouble. Him then almost destroying the goal net was pretty funny.
Can't believe Marshall did the same thing again after what Beckham did to him when he was at Wimbledon
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The second goal was quite freaky. He would miss that 999 times out of 1000. Clarke takes the blame for this defeat. He selected a very negative side and formation. This has a knock on effect to the mentality of the players as demonstrated by the finishing. I don't think England will have a problem with this CZ side as they seem very average. I doubt Scotland will get 1 point now because this was their best chance to get a win. Dissapointed but not surprised.
Why do Scotland managers have to be so negative? I would like to see a non-Scot manage the team next, someone like Bielsa.
Why do Scotland managers have to be so negative? I would like to see a non-Scot manage the team next, someone like Bielsa.
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I know. A good striker can make or break a team. The Czechs had nothing going forward other than Schick playing out of his skin. And they got a couple of goals out of it. Our chances fall to players who aren't our best finishers and it's no surprise we don't put them away.
That said I don't necessarily think Dykes was the problem. He provided some value in his hustle and aerial presence and could have played next to Adams. But without Adams, we only had two plans - punt it long or hope Robertson can conjure up something out of nothing down the left. That worked for a while, but we needed other lines of attack. With O'Donnell providing next to nothing on the right, and the midfield suffocated, our centre-halves just clumsily knocked it about and then could only fire it long.
The problem is Clarke's got nowhere to go tactically from here. Ideally he'd have played this one positively and then made a defensive change against England given the armoury of attacking threats they'll present. It would have been more justified playing these tactics against England than it is against the Czechs who might have struggled with the quick passing football and superior 1v1 ability of the likes of Gilmour and Patterson, but were absolutely at home repelling our stodgy direct football.
Thought Scotland were a bit unlucky. Had some great chances but poor finishing (And a worldie) fecked them.
Ha to be said though that Dyke and O'Donnell at right back in particular were awful. Is O'Donnell always like that? He really did look like a non league player. (No disrespect to amateur footballers).
Ha to be said though that Dyke and O'Donnell at right back in particular were awful. Is O'Donnell always like that? He really did look like a non league player. (No disrespect to amateur footballers).
For years we were struggling for an international class right-back. And O'Donnell came in and has done okay defensively. In the absence of any real alternatives he did a passable job. The problem is we have since switched to a 3-5-2 which exposes the all-round game of your wing-back: they need to be proper two-way players who can attack and defend. O'Donnell is a decent Scottish Premiership standard full-back, but he's not a wing back, never mind an international one. The other problem is the emergence of Nathan Patterson at Rangers who has played a handful of games at the end of the season, but already looks a couple of levels above O'Donnell and whose dribbling and technical ability would make him a great fit for a wing-back role. Clarke managed O'Donnell at Kilmarnock so he has this overbearing loyalty, but which is actually undermining the player by putting him into a position and against a standard of opposition he's not comfortable with.
Adams has to start the next game, that much is clear.
Thanks for the reply. Good knowledge.
I honestly felt for O'Donnell yesterday. As you say, he wasn't comfortable at all.
If he starts on Friday we really should be looking to get at him with Shaw + either Rashford or Sterling. Your danger man looks to be Robertson who I thought was excellent in the game yesterday, especially first half. Walker will need to be on his game.
You started a striker who wasn't good enough for Australia. That's pretty wild. 