Scotland Secure Nations League Promotion Thanks To Dogged Defending

The Scots rode their luck at times but were able to get the result they needed
21:54, 27 Sep 2022

Scotland have done it. They have been promoted to UEFA Nations League A after they secured a hard-earned point as they drew 0-0 with Ukraine at the Marszalek Pilsudski Stadium. They have also guaranteed themselves a Euro 2024 play-off place if they were to need it, while also earning a place in Pot 2 for the  Euro 2024 draw.

And the next time this competition rolls around, the Scots will be the highest competing British side following both England and Wales suffered relegation from the top division this week.

Steve Clarke’s side showed their ability to play with class and fluency in their victory at home against Ukraine last week, while also showing they have what it takes to grind out results when up against it, as tonight’s match against the same opponents showed. The Scots largely had Craig Gordon to thank, with the veteran goalkeeper rolling back the years with another superb performance in between the sticks.

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They had their backs against the walls late in the match and did ride their luck at times, but the side showed their togetherness and desire to keep the ball out of the net - a skill that is worth so much on the international stage. And sometimes you do need luck to be able to compete at the highest level of football, which despite this particular performance, Scotland have shown glimpses that they can achieve this in time.

Scotland’s start reflected their impressive last two performances against this evening’s opponents and Republic of Ireland. They came close to scoring inside a minute when Che Adams played an intricate one-two with John McGinn before unleashing a shot that was deflected fractionally wide by goalkeeper Andriy Lunin.

Ukraine had a great chance to put themselves in front through Andriy Yarmolenko when he was found unmarked inside the box to meet a Mykhaylo Mudryk cross, but his effort sailed over the bar. The hosts went close again when Artem Dovbyk was released in by Yarmolenko's sumptuous outside-of-the-foot pass. He raced in behind, opened himself up and shot across Gordon, but the veteran shot-stopped kept him out.

Moments later, Scotland thought they had a penalty. A cross from Ryan Fraser hit Taras Stepanenko and the ref pointed to the spot. However, after the briefest of VAR checks, it was shown that the ball hit the defender’s head. Scotland came close again when Ukraine failed to clear his lines and the ball fell kindly for Ryan Jack, but he blazed his shot over the bar.

Then all of a sudden, Ukraine were on the ascendency. Stepanenko found freedom inside the Scotland box for a corner but his effort flew wide. Oleksandr Petrakov’s side were looking dangerous in the latter stages of the first half and the half-time break came at the right time for the visitors.

Both sides looked threatening after the restart. Gordon was called into action once again to pull off another fine stop to deny Mudryk before being on hand to deal with a long-range effort from Danylo Ignatenko. As the game wore on, the Ukrainian pressure intensified on the Scots and it seemed that they could crumble, but they stood firm to see out an incredible result.

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