Sebastien Pocognoli admitted relief after Kieron Bowie's goal against North Macedonia ended Scotland's scoring drought and spared him questions about an unwanted record.
Bowie, the Sassuolo striker, netted from range in Skopje inside the opening 10 minutes to give Scotland lift off in the Nations League. John McGinn added a second from the penalty spot in the second half to seal the win.
Going into the game, Scotland had failed to score in four consecutive matches, including Pocognoli's first two games against Slovenia and Switzerland.
Record narrowly avoided
The record for the longest stretch without a goal stood at 477 minutes from the 1970-71 season. It would have been surpassed in the 25th minute of the match.
The Belgian boss said he was happy not to field further questions on the topic after the stat was flagged before kick-off.
Speaking to the BBC after the game, Pocognoli said: "He [Bowie] scored the most difficult one from the game, and I was really pleased for him, because I know the topic about not scoring will be on the table after 25 minutes, so we cut this.
"I was happy for him because it's his first goal, and I was really happy with his performance and with many of the lads."
First win as boss
The win was Pocognoli's first since replacing Steve Clarke, but he was quick to praise his players, who survived late scares after Scott McKenna's straight red card.
He added: "I am very pleased. I was very frustrated in the last game that we didn't have a proper opportunity in the last game against a very strong side. Today, we made the most of a difficult game.
"It's always difficult to play away from home. It can be a tricky game if you are not 100 per cent aligned together, and from the first moment we were in the game.
"So, we decided to have a good game and that's a credit to the players."
Robertson's milestone
Captain Andy Robertson impressed down the left flank as he earned his 100th cap.
Asked about the skipper, Pocognoli said: "He had a special day with us in the hotel, and the best way to celebrate this was with the good performance of the team and the three points.
"Everything makes sense when you win, everyone is happy and it makes his moment special from him. He got a good ovation from the Tartan Army, and let's have a drink together now and enjoy it a little bit."
