Scotland secured a 2-0 win over North Macedonia in Skopje on Saturday night, with Sebastien Pocognoli celebrating his first victory as manager. The result was marked by a dominant performance, with 25 efforts at goal, 10 on target, and one shot hitting the post.
Dominant display in Skopje
Pocognoli's side played with aggression and intensity from start to finish, creating numerous chances against a North Macedonia team that has now gone 11 straight games without a win over the past 12 months. The scoreline could have been more emphatic, but the performance offered a glimpse of what the new manager has been promising since succeeding Steve Clarke.
Reflecting on the win, Pocognoli said: "Yes, I think we had a good game. I’m always objective after a game. When it’s not good I will say it. But we played a good game. We created a lot of chances and we kept them to zero."
Pocognoli pleased with performance
The Belgian manager acknowledged the quality of the display, noting the team's balance in creating chances and their effectiveness in pressing. "I enjoyed it. It was not an easy pitch and we tried to play some good football. We were well balanced in terms of the way we created chances," he said. "We had good moments of pressing as well. When they played the long ball we were ready for covering that and winning the second ball and the transition. It was quite a good game but we have to stay with our feet on the ground."
Pocognoli also addressed the support from Scotland fans, who chanted his name during the match. He said: "I didn’t realise what they were signing as no-one explained it to me. But am I happy about it? I will be honest, yes. It makes me feel like they have welcomed me well and we produced a game that shows that we respect them."
Looking ahead to Slovenia
The win sets up a final match of the international break against Slovenia at Hampden on Tuesday night. Pocognoli emphasised the importance of finishing strongly, saying: "Now it will be very important to have one last good game at home." He also referenced the previous home game against Switzerland, admitting: "Yeah, we still have a bad taste in the mouth from the last home game against Switzerland. I was a little bit sad after that because I didn’t have that moment when I really enjoyed the game."
Pocognoli deployed Ben Gannon-Doak as a wing back in Skopje, despite hinting earlier that the Bournemouth winger might not start. He explained: "No, I said that I had a plan for all the games throughout this camp and I was honest with you when I said that the Switzerland game delayed it a bit, some of the ideas that I had. But Ben was always in my head for starting the Macedonia game as a starting player."
Gannon-Doak impressed, and Pocognoli noted: "The good thing is that Ben was disappointed he didn’t score. But he played a good game. I told him he played well, defensively he was good."
