Por Renan Filho · 2026-09-27
The Alex Pocognoli era began with a 1-1 draw against a spirited but limited Republic of Ireland side at Hampden Park on Saturday evening. For the 50,000 inside the stadium, and the millions watching from living rooms across the land, the result was not the story. The story was the shape of the team, the tempo of the play, and the same, maddening, all-too-familiar failure to convert chances into goals.
Pocognoli, the 38-year-old Belgian who replaced the sacked Steve Clarke after a disastrous Euro 2024 campaign, has been tasked with a cultural reset. He has spoken about pressing, about bravery, about playing on the front foot. And for the first 30 minutes, Scotland did exactly that. They pressed high, they moved the ball quickly through midfield, and they created three clear-cut opportunities. Scott McTominay, the Napoli midfielder, headed over from six yards. John McGinn forced a fine save from Caoimhín Kelleher. And Che Adams, once again, found himself clean through on goal, only to drag his shot wide of the far post.
That last chance, in the 28th minute, was the moment that defined the afternoon. Adams, a striker who has now scored just 6 goals in 32 international appearances, had the entire goal to aim at. He chose the wrong option. It was the kind of miss that has haunted Scotland for years – the kind of miss that separates the teams that qualify for major tournaments from those that watch them from the couch.
The Republic of Ireland, managed by the pragmatic Heimir Hallgrímsson, sat deep and absorbed pressure. They had one shot on target in the entire match, and they took it. In the 63rd minute, a simple long ball over the top caught Scotland’s makeshift back line – missing the injured Kieran Tierney and Andy Robertson – out of position. Evan Ferguson, the Brighton striker, showed exactly what Scotland lack: a clinical edge. He controlled, turned, and slotted the ball past Angus Gunn with the composure of a man who has scored 12 goals in 21 Premier League starts.
Scotland responded with the expected urgency. Pocognoli threw on Lawrence Shankland and Ryan Christie, and the team pushed for an equaliser. It came, somewhat fortunately, in the 78th minute when McTominay’s header was deflected in by Irish defender Nathan Collins. The goal was met with a roar of relief, but the subsequent 12 minutes were a microcosm of Scotland’s problem. They had the ball in dangerous areas, they had the momentum, but they lacked the final pass, the final touch, the final decision. The game ended 1-1, and the feeling was one of disappointment, not delight.
**CONTEXTO**
Pocognoli inherits a squad that has underachieved for a decade. Since the 1998 World Cup, Scotland have qualified for only two major tournaments – Euro 2020 and Euro 2024 – and have failed to win a single match in either. The underlying numbers are damning. Over the last five years, Scotland have averaged just 1.1 goals per game against teams ranked in the top 50 in the world. Against teams ranked below 50, that average rises to 1.8, but the quality of opposition at major tournaments is consistently higher.
The problem is not a lack of creative midfielders. McTominay, McGinn, Billy Gilmour, and Lewis Ferguson are all established Premier League or Serie A players. The problem is the absence of a reliable, top-level striker. Since the retirement of Kenny Miller in 2013, Scotland have cycled through 14 different centre-forwards, none of whom has scored more than 8 international goals. Adams, Shankland, Lyndon Dykes, and Kevin Nisbet have all been tried, and all have failed to convince.
Pocognoli has spoken about the need for a 'systemic' solution – a way of playing that creates higher-quality chances, not just more of them. He has also hinted at a willingness to look at uncapped players, including English-born strikers with Scottish heritage, such as Southampton’s Adam Armstrong and Coventry City’s Ellis Simms. This is a controversial approach, but it is also a pragmatic one. Scotland cannot afford to be sentimental.
**ANÁLISE FORTIS**
From a liberal-conservative perspective, the Scottish national team’s problems are not a matter of bad luck or poor refereeing. They are a matter of structural inefficiency. The Scottish FA, like many state-adjacent sporting bodies, has historically prioritised participation and 'development' over elite performance. The result is a system that produces technically competent midfielders but fails to develop strikers – the most specialised, and most valuable, position in the game.
In a free market, clubs would compete to produce the best finishers, and the best would rise to the top. But in Scotland, the top two clubs – Celtic and Rangers – dominate the league and often field foreign strikers, leaving Scottish forwards to rot on the bench or move to lower leagues in England. The SPFL’s salary cap and squad regulations, while designed to maintain competitive balance, actually distort the market by encouraging clubs to sign cheap foreign imports rather than develop homegrown talent.
Pocognoli cannot fix this overnight. But he can make a start. He can select players based on merit, not reputation. He can demand that his team be more ruthless in the final third. And he can, crucially, ignore the sentimental attachment to players who have consistently failed at international level. The draw against Ireland was not a disaster, but it was a missed opportunity. Scotland are in a tough qualifying group for the 2026 World Cup, alongside Italy, Belgium, and Norway. If they cannot beat the Republic of Ireland at home, they have no chance of finishing in the top two.
The encouraging signs are there. The pressing structure, the quick transitions, the willingness to take risks – these are all improvements on Clarke’s cautious, reactive approach. But football, like economics, is about results, not intentions. Pocognoli must find a way to convert possession into goals, or his tenure will end in the same way as his predecessor’s: with a whimper, and a flight home from another failed campaign.
**Q: What was the final score of Scotland vs Republic of Ireland?** A: The match ended 1-1. Scott McTominay’s deflected header in the 78th minute cancelled out Evan Ferguson’s opener for Ireland.
**Q: Who is Alex Pocognoli?** A: Alex Pocognoli is a 38-year-old Belgian coach, formerly of Standard Liège and Union SG, who was appointed Scotland manager in August 2026. He replaced Steve Clarke after Scotland’s winless Euro 2024 campaign.
**Q: How many goals has Che Adams scored for Scotland?** A: Che Adams has scored 6 goals in 32 appearances. He missed a one-on-one chance against Ireland, continuing a pattern of profligacy that has defined Scotland’s strikers for over a decade.
**Q: What are Scotland’s chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup?** A: Scotland are in a group with Italy, Belgium, and Norway. Only the group winner qualifies automatically, with the second-place team entering a playoff. Based on current form, Scotland’s chances are slim, but not impossible.
**Q: What is the FORTIS view on the Scottish FA’s approach?** A: The FORTIS view is that the Scottish FA’s focus on participation over elite performance, combined with a distorted domestic transfer market, has created a systemic failure to produce top-level strikers. The solution lies in deregulation, merit-based selection, and a ruthless focus on results – not in sentiment or administrative tinkering.