Scotland head coach Sebastien Pocognoli has declared his honeymoon period over, challenging his players to raise their game ahead of the Euro 2028 qualifying campaign. The Belgian boss, who took over from Steve Clarke, used his first camp in September to get to know his squad and staff, but he is now ready to demand more.
Mixed Start and High Expectations
Pocognoli's first camp ended with four Nations League points from a possible 12, following matches against Switzerland, Slovenia, and North Macedonia. The 39-year-old is now looking to build on that foundation as Scotland prepare for their final two group games.
He has welcomed back Scott McTominay, Che Adams, and Kieran Tierney for the upcoming matches against North Macedonia at Hampden and Switzerland in St Gallen. Pocognoli says he is about to raise the bar for his squad in terms of the high standards he expects.
Raising the Standard
Pocognoli said: "We need to improve. The first camp was to get to know each other. I saw things in training and in the games we produced some very good moments. We created a lot of chances, maybe more than in previous years against those types of opponents."
"But the next step is to score more goals and clean up the mistakes we made. Because we conceded goals from nothing. We must try to be consistent in the way we want to play. We have a different system, different players, and a different approach to the game. I'm sure we can shine in that way but we need to make the standard higher and win games."
Looking Ahead to Euro 2028
Scotland will discover their Euro 2028 qualifying opponents at the draw in Belfast on December 6. They could also secure a place in the tournament through extra home nations spots, but Pocognoli is focused on qualifying on merit.
He said: "No, we are not qualified. We NEED to qualify. The best way is to qualify from our group. We know we can qualify from a different way."
"We can still have a fantastic Euro qualifying campaign and use that to be there which can help us have a good Euros. But the best way is to stimulate the winning mentality, to make us ready for the big moments. My job is to make it click as quickly as possible to make it happen."
