Sebastien Pocognoli ended his continued wait for his first win as Scotland manager as his side clinched a dominant two-nil victory against North Macedonia in their UEFA Nations League fixture in Skopje.
Scotland captain Andy Robertson came close twice before Kieron Bowie gave Scotland an early lead with a thunderous finish in the 7th minute. John McGinn doubled the visitors’ lead from the spot past the hour mark. The two-goal margin flattered the hosts, who had goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski to thank for his superb reflexes in front of goal in withstanding Scotland’s relentless attack, denying Robertson and Ben Gannon-Doak repeatedly. It was a memorable night for Scotland as Robertson earned his 100th cap and he became the second player to make a century of appearances in Scottish colours.
Scotland’s Relentless Attacking Barrage
Scotland started the match strongly and came out flying off the blocks. Andy Robertson wasted no time in stamping his mark on the match, but Stole Dimitrievski brilliantly denied his fierce shot in the 5th minute, to the relief of the home side. North Macedonia’s relief was short-lived as Kieron Bowie opened the scoring for Scotland two minutes later.
Billy Gilmour released a pass to Bowie about 18 yards from goal before he set it up nicely, shifted it on to his left foot before hammering an unstoppable bullet into the bottom corner from the edge of the area. The goal was his first international goal and Scotland’s first in over 420 minutes of play — they had not found the back of the net since the start of the Nations League.
Robertson had a chance to double Scotland’s lead three minutes after Bowie’s opener but dragged his shot wide. Play was stopped briefly as a dog ran onto the field of play. The game resumed afterwards, and Scotland piled on the pressure.
The hosts’ best chance came on the stroke of the half-hour mark as Kieron Bowie rounded North Macedonia’s goalie, but his shot was blocked. Former Liverpool winger Ben Gannon-Doak was the next Scotland player to probe North Macedonia’s defence, but Dimitrevski held onto his shot from the edge of the area. Scotland were deservedly ahead at the break.
Ageless McGinn
Scotland started the second half on the same note they ended the first, as John McGinn sent Gannon-Doak racing through on goal, but he floundered; his shot lacked power and went straight at the goalie. Gannon-Doak was a thorn in the visitors’ defence all night long, and his persistence paid off as he was brought down in the penalty area after a darting run. A penalty was awarded to the visitors six minutes after the restart. Unfortunately, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) intervened and, after a review, the referee overturned the decision.
Gannon-Doak had another chance to double Scotland’s lead, but his shot was kept out again before McGinn steered a shot wide of the post, denying Bowie with a point-blank save after Gannon-Doak set him up. It was second time lucky for Scotland as they were awarded another penalty when Bojan Miovski was penalised for handling Bowie’s rebound after Scott McKenna’s header crashed against the upright; the decision went in favour of the visitors on this occasion.
McGinn was handed spot kick duties, and he stood up to the task, burying the penalty emphatically and sending the goalkeeper flying in the opposite direction. Double delight! The three points were beyond doubt at that point for the visitors. The goal was the 22nd goal of his international career. Questions had been asked of McGinn’s relevance to the national team and his future with the side, but he quelled the rumours with a superb performance.
It was deja vu all over again for Scotland as Scott McKenna was punished and sent off for a last-man challenge on Agon Elezi seven minutes from the end of normal time. The visitors finished the game with ten men, and that was the only stain on an otherwise perfect night for Scotland.
Robertson’s century
Robertson is now two caps behind his fellow Liverpool legend and Scotland’s all-time appearance record holder, Kenny Dalglish. He could surpass him during November’s international break. Robbo is 32 years old, and he is still going strong — he’ll put a considerable gap between him and King Kenny before he hangs up his boots. Since he received the captain’s armband from Alex McLeish following Scott Brown’s retirement in 2018, Robertson has captained Scotland 30 times more than any other player. Adidas produced a special boot for him to commemorate his century.
“It means everything to me; it means everything to my family. I’ve been away now 100 times; I’ve got to feel sorry for my wife! It’s been an unbelievable journey. I remember my first game, and it’s been a process since then,” said Robertson.
“It’s emotional for me. I love this country, there’s only one person before me in the men’s game to do that, it’s a pretty special achievement.”
“I thought Kenny Dalglish was going to be worried about his goalscoring record in the first five minutes! I had about six shots.”
“They did a nice presentation for me; I told them I wanted the win. The lads did so well to get the win, it’ll be a special one for me and my family. We played really well on a really difficult pitch. All of the lads were magnificent, and it was a big win. You want to get it as early as possible for the new manager, and thankfully we did that tonight,” added Robertson.
Relief for Pocognoli
Sebastien Pocognoli, Scotland head coach, expressed his relief at securing his first win for the national side in a statement to BBC Scotland.
“I’m very pleased with this first win. But we stay stable because we have a game in three days, and we just want to have another good game before the end of the first break.
“We played a very good game, we created a lot of chances, we keep two times a zero in three games, which for me means a lot also.”
“We played with the right attitude, and for me it was a nice game, not everything was perfect, because we should have scored more goals, but we are in the continuity of the second half from Slovenia, and I hope we can have another good game at home.”
“I was really pleased with his (Bowie) performance, and from many of the lads.”
It was a dominant performance by Scotland, with impressive performances from Bowie, Stephen Welsh and Luis Binks, new members of the team. However, their disciplinary record has become a cause of concern for the coach, with two red cards in their last two games.
Scotland have recorded four points, after a draw against Slovenia in their opening match and a three-nil thrashing by Switzerland in their second match. They sit third on the table tied on points with Slovenia. Scotland are in action next against Slovenia on Monday at Hampden Park in their final game of the international break. North Macedonia sit on 0 points and a minus 7 goal difference. They’ll take on Switzerland on Tuesday in their final game of the international window.
