Scotland drew 0-0 with Slovenia in Ljubljana in Sebastien Pocognoli's first match as head coach, and while the opening 45 minutes made for worrying viewing, the second-half improvement and the Tartan Army's full-time reaction suggested the Belgian's vision may be taking shape.
It took a while to get going—longer than the new man would have wanted—and there was perhaps an element of early stage fright to the unveiling. But although it ended in a goalless stalemate, there was just about enough on show to suggest Scotland might be onto something with Pocognoli in charge.
Slow start under the new boss
The first half was instantly forgettable, with Scotland fortunate not to find themselves trailing by at least a couple of goals. McKenna lost his first header, Hendry jumped into a tackle which gave the Slovenians a free-kick in a dangerous area, and Scotland were forced onto the back foot.
The ball was in the back of Angus Gunn's net after only seven minutes when Andraz Sporar rocketed one into the roof, but Scotland were spared by a linesman's flag. What followed was pretty much 45 minutes of nothing much at all—no pressing, no intensity, no tempo of any kind.
The half ended with Scotland finally moving forward in numbers and, seconds before the interval, Robbie Ure crashed a shot from distance which glanced off the base of Jan Oblak's left-hand post. That was pretty much the only threat to the Atletico Madrid keeper's goal.
Second-half improvement
Pocognoli had promised a recalibration—a new and exciting, front-footed Scotland—and his first team sheet was certainly a pivot away from the cautious approach of the previous manager. He rolled out his preferred formation built on a three-man central defence, with Jack Hendry and Scott McKenna joined by Stephen Welsh on the left. Aaron Hickey and Andy Robertson ran the flanks, Lewis Ferguson anchored midfield, and Billy Gilmour and John McGinn were positioned to his right and left.
The biggest curveball came further up the pitch, where Pocognoli teamed young Robbie Ure with returning old-timer Oli McBurnie in a twin-pronged attack. Ure led the line, while McBurnie dropped slightly deeper to make up numbers at the tip of a diamond.
McBurnie had an early chance after the restart when he slalomed into the Slovenian box and looked a certain scorer, but he opted to try to outsmart Oblak by rounding the keeper, who threw out a huge right glove to claw it off the toe of his boot.
Signs of promise
This was better, brighter stuff from the Scots, and Oblak had to pull off another smart stop to prevent Gilmour from slotting home not long after. In all areas, Scotland's work was a great deal sharper and more aggressive, with a more animated Pocognoli waving his players forward from the touchline.
As the intensity rose, Hickey headed wide from a corner and sub Kieron Bowie gave Oblak another couple of testers. It did feel as if a goal was coming, and McBurnie thought he had bagged it in 73 minutes when his header was batted out at point-blank range.
It ended nothing-nothing, but that was still an improvement on all the nothingness of the first half. There is undoubtedly much work for Pocognoli to do, but at least Scotland left Slovenia with a clearer sense of its new direction.
