Scotland fans have descended on Fenway Park for the baseball in Boston. But for the football team, the wait goes on to go beyond first base at the World Cup. There was no home run to the knock-out stage against Morocco in Foxborough for Steve Clarke’s side. Instead, Ismael Saibari almost smashed the ball out of the park with a stunning goal to win it, with a 1-0 scoreline.
The same player also hit the bar for the African champions, while Angus Gunn denied Bilal El Khannouss with a super save. But the Tartan Army weren’t pitched into a mood of despair just yet. The narrow defeat means they haven’t struck out just yet, with a huge game against Brazil still to come on Wednesday in Miami. They’re still alive in Group C but might have to take something against Carlo Ancelotti’s side to secure qualification.
Match Analysis
Clarke’s side made a poor start here and were on the back foot early on. Never mind the Red Sox, Scotland were left with red faces after just 71 SECONDS. Morocco danger man Saibari - who has just signed for Bayern Munich - made them pay for an insipid opening by firing the Atlas Lions in front with his second goal of the tournament. The Scots improved after the interval. John McGinn and Scott McTominay had penalty claims turned away and Ryan Christie fired over but they couldn’t find an equaliser.
The loss is a blow to the Scots, as a point here would have put them on the cusp of history. After picking up three in their opener against Haiti that MIGHT be enough, depending on goal difference. If not, they’ll need to defy the odds and avoid defeat to Brazil in Florida to qualify for the first time ever.
Five Talking Points
Not the End of the World
At the start of this game, you feared the worst for Scotland and Steve Clarke. In fact, after 2 minutes of this match it felt like we’d be on the receiving end of a damaging defeat. It was beginning to remind us of that 3-0 loss to the Moroccans at France 98’ in St Etienne. And of course, a heavy loss would have hindered our prospects of qualifying from Group C if it went down to goal difference. Scotland were too passive early on and looked panicked in possession. They were fortunate not to go further behind before half-time.
But credit where it’s due to Clarke and his players. After the break, they were much better and started to believe they belonged on the same stage as some of these Morocco stars. At times in the second period, they pinned the Africans back. Lewis Ferguson dictated from the middle of the park and Scott McTominay got better as the game wore on. At least towards the end of the 90 we looked capable of competing with and holding our own against one of the tournament's top sides, which should offer a bit of encouragement ahead of facing Brazil. And crucially, despite a defeat, the score was kept at one which gives Clarke’s boys a fighting chance going into the last game.
Scotland Switches
So those in-depth conversations on the training pitch with Kieran Tierney during the week were significant, after all. After securing a precious three points against Haiti, it was always going to be fascinating to find out if Clarke tinkered with his team. And following his chats with Tierney, the Celtic defender got the nod to face Morocco as the manager changed formation. Given the quality the African champions have at their disposal, it was no real surprise to see Clarke opt for a more compact, cautious approach - compared to the 4-4-2 we seen against Haiti.
But most people expected Tierney to slot in at left centre-half in a back three. Instead, Clarke sprung a surprise by sticking to a four and deploying Tierney on the left flank in front of Andy Robertson, allowing John McGinn to switch wings. Nathan Patterson was preferred to Aaron Hickey at right-back and Ryan Christie was drafted into midfield to give Scotland an extra body. The Tierney experiment didn’t really work and when he came off injured after an hour, Ben Gannon-Doak replaced him.
Sloppy Start
You always felt that for Scotland to get something out of this game, they had to keep Morocco at bay early on. It was vital that Clarke’s side established a foothold by playing with an intensity that let the opposition know they were in a contest. But that plan went out of the window after about 77 seconds when Saibari blasted home the opening goal. It’s quite simple. At the top level, and especially at major tournaments, you can’t start a game in such a sloppy fashion.
Right from the off, Gunn hooked a ball out of the park. Then Christie lost a ball in midfield after being laboured in possession. And of course, for Saibari’s goal we just weren’t at it defensively. Grant Hanley made a poor decision to allow the forward to run off him. The Scotland centre-back was hoping for offside but with the new automated system, you can no longer rely on an assistant’s flag. Saibari was given the freedom of the 18-yard-box to line up his shot before rifling an explosive effort beyond Gunn into the top corner. It was a nightmare start for Clarke’s side but they weren’t sharp enough in that opening spell and only had themselves to blame.
Golden Gunn
At the time, it might have felt like just a really good stop from Scotland keeper Angus Gunn to deny Stuttgart midfielder Bilal El Khannouss from a corner. But in the grand scheme of things, when it comes to Scotland potentially qualifying for the knock-out phase of the World Cup, his brilliant save might be absolutely vital. From Achraf Hakimi’s corner, El Khannouss met it flush at the near post and it looked goal-bound. But Gunn flew at it and somehow clawed it clear to keep Scotland in the game at 1-0 down.
If the Africans had gone two in front, it would have been a gut-punch to Clarke’s side and might have led to more goals. But Gunn’s moment gave them a lift and they were better after he kept El Khannouss’ effort out. Obviously, no-one of a Scotland persuasion is happy with a defeat but if they were going to get beat, it was important not to concede a glut of goals. And Gunn’s fantastic one-handed save helped ensure that was the case - and kept us in with a shout of qualifying with one game left.
Magic Morocco
Sometimes in football, you need to hold your hands up and say you were up against a top side that was better than you and that was the case here. Morocco aren’t ranked sixth in the world by FIFA and current AFCON champions for nothing. And in spells here against the Scots, they showed their star quality. In Haikimi, Brahim Diaz and Saibari are three of the top talents in world football. Saibari has just been snapped up by German giants Bayern and it’s easy to see why.
His thunderous shot to open the scoring was right out of the top drawer and it followed up his gorgeous finish against Brazil in Morocco’s opening game. Here, they looked fitter and stronger than Clarke’s side for long spells and when they’re on it, they can keep the ball for fun. Saibari hit the bar when his effort deflected off Jack Hendry, while El Khannouss was only denied a goal by Gunn’s brilliant reflex save at his near post.
