Remember the halcyon months of March to September last year?
Remember the run of wins against Spain, Norway and Georgia that propelled Scotland into Euro 2024 and fuelled the Tartan Army more than any amount of bevvy ever could?
Scotland were among the darlings of European football – and what a time it was.
Five matches, five victories. Scotland went up against the creativity and goalscoring might of Rodri, Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and conceded one goal – from the penalty spot.
- Author, Tom English
- Role, BBC Scotland’s chief sports writer in Cologne
They played dynamic football at times. When not playing so fluently, they dug in and still won. They were as tight as a drum. Nothing came easy against Steve Clarke’s driven men.
A nation now needs that team, and its guile, belligerence and stingy defence, to reappear – and quickly.
On Wednesday against Switzerland – who have reached the knockout stages of five finals in a row – they have a game to keep themselves in the tournament.
Blind hope says they’ll take a point, or three. A judgement based more on head over heart might produce a different forecast.
‘Enough errors to make tough men weep’
Over the last 10 months, Scotland’s defence has sprung holes. Where before they were a team that didn’t concede, they’re now a team that can’t stop conceding.
The stat they’ve been hit with every day since shipping five – going on seven – against Germany, is 26 goals given away in 10 games.
Clarke doesn’t need any reminding of how standards have fallen. It was written on his face on Friday, and again on Sunday, when he spoke to the media.
It’s not just the weight of goals Scotland are losing that must be messing with his head, it’s the type of goals, the maddening simplicity of some of them, the errors that could make a tough man weep.
All this started with the friendly against England. Phil Foden scored from the edge of the six-yard box with nobody picking him up. Jude Bellingham made it two after Andy Robertson passed him the ball. Harry Kane made it three when Robertson was sleeping.
They played Spain next and again the vulnerability in their own six-yard box was a feature. Alvaro Morata headed home from close range. Aaron Hickey’s slip while in possession was the principle cause of Spain’s second, even though it was Ryan Porteous who put the ball in his own net.
The 4-1 loss to France featured two more headed goals from inside Scotland’s six-yard box, an area of the pitch that had previously been something of a fortress.
England, Spain and France are class sides with multiple weapons. Losing goals against them can be tolerated, but a spiral had begun and Scotland haven’t stopped spinning in the vortex ever since.
Kvaratskhelia scored from close range in the 2–2 draw in Tbilisi.
In the 3-3 draw with Norway that followed, the visitors got their first via a shot near the penalty spot, their second via a near-post finish and their third from a free header in the six-yard box again.
All three originated down Scotland’s left, where Greg Taylor was left exposed. Robertson didn’t play, but as experienced as he is, the captain has not been a particularly good defender in this run of games.
Scotland’s problems don’t solely exist down the right-hand side. Germany hit them with left-right combinations throughout Friday’s game.
The Netherlands scored two of their four on, or just outside, the six-yard box.
Nathan Patterson gave the ball away for Northern Ireland’s winner at Hampden in March.
Finland scored with yet another free header just outside the six-yard box and got an equaliser after Craig Gordon gave away a penalty.
And then Scotland lost 5-1 against Germany when all the frailties were horribly exposed by an utterly exhilarating home team.
This is a deep-rooted pattern of behaviour now, not just against Europe’s elite but also against nations outside the top strata.
‘Psychology needed as much as coaching’
Scotland are without Hickey at these championships and his loss is wounding at right wing-back, but what ails Clarke’s side is bigger than just one absent player.
This is about a soft underbelly appearing where before there was resilience. This is about doubt replacing certainty all over the pitch.
And it’s about Clarke trying to pull off a feat of psychology as much as a feat of coaching against the Swiss.
It’s about personnel and structure, but it’s also about mindset at this point.
They’ve just been pummelled. By turns, they themselves have spoken about an embarrassment and a humbling.
Callum McGregor has apologised to the fans, who have been nothing short of extraordinary, even by their jaw-dropping standards.
McGregor said on Saturday that Switzerland will smell blood – and they will.
He, and others, have spoken about the need to stick together and stay strong. Wednesday will be the test of that.
Clarke has done many excellent things as Scotland head coach. He has fixed problems that looked unfixable, he has won matches that for a generation looked unwinnable, he has taken Scotland to tournaments that looked out of reach.
He did it over time, but he doesn’t have any time now. Wherever this team’s fearlessness has wandered off to, it needs to find its way back.
The soft touches need to become hard cases again.