[ad_1]
If anyone in Scotland had the right to be apprehensive when the Euro 2020 play-off semi-final against Israel in Hampden on Thursday night went to the penalty shootout, it was Steve Clarke.
He had been Chelsea’s assistant when the Stamford Bridge club faced Premier League rivals Manchester United in the Champions League final in Moscow in 2008.
That match was decided by point-of-view kicks after the English giants failed to break up after 120 minutes of football, and it didn’t exactly end well for the expensive London side.
Chelsea captain John Terry had a shot at a famous victory for Avram Grant’s team, but he slipped on the soaked turf at Luzhniki Stadium and hit the post.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s team would go on to lift the biggest prize in European club game for the third time as his downcast compatriot Clarke watched in utter disbelief.
Fortunately for Clarke and for the country, John McGinn, Callum McGregor, Scott McTominay, Lawrence Shankland and Kenny McLean were not wrong from 12 yards.
“It was great to see the penalties in the back of the net,” Clarke said yesterday as he recalled the dramatic events of the previous night.
“To be fair, soccer owed me one in a shootout after the last one I was involved in before Thursday night. I was at Chelsea when John Terry slipped and missed what would have been the winning penalty for us.
“So the game owed me one and it was good to have it on Thursday. It was nice to be on the right side of a shootout this time.
“You could see how much it meant to them when Kenny scored the final penalty to beat us. But I should have seen them in the locker room afterwards, when we all walked in! ”
The way Clarke’s charges dealt with the pressure of the first penalty shootout in Scotland’s history gives the coach hope that he can cope with the demands of the final.
Overtaking Serbia, who beat Norway 2-1 in Oslo after their semi-final had gone into extra time, at the Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade on 12 November will be a difficult task.
Their opponents can line up, among many others, Aleksandar Kolorov on defense, Dusan Tadic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic in midfield and Aleksandar Mitrovic and Luka Jovic on offense. It will be a step forward and something more.
However, Clarke, who was heavily criticized after unconvincing demonstrations against Israel and the Czech Republic in the Nations League last month, can see definite signs of progress and is optimistic his team will compete.
He was heavily criticized by many, including his correspondent, for playing a three-man rearguard and deploying midfielder Scott McTominay out of position in the center half in those outings.
But the benefit from those games was easy to see Thursday night. The defense performed well despite Scott McKenna, Liam Palmer and Kieran Tierney being ruled out the day before and Declan Gallagher and Stephen O’Donnell being pushed back to the starting lineup. McTominay also secured himself in the back.
“Everyone is talking about the two games last month,” he said. But they were key games to build this month.
“The character they showed in the last 10 minutes in the Czech Republic, when they threw everything into the area and we blocked everything and took balls, was important.
“I spoke with the players then about how a team is formed. This is how the desire to be successful as a team is generated. The same thing happened again on Thursday night with a group of players who really wanted to do well.
“The more positive results they get and the more positive feedback they get, the more they feel good about themselves and become a better team.”
Clarke did not consider the possibility that Scotland’s chances of reaching the Euro 2020 final next summer would come to an unfortunate end after a few turbulent days: Stuart Armstrong tested positive for coronavirus and Ryan Christie and Tierney were forced into isolation. for themselves. Israel’s party went to penalties.
“That didn’t cross my mind,” he said. “I knew the character who was in the field. He knew the boys were determined to do it. Everything that was put in front of us this week could be classified as an obstacle.
“But I said it was a great opportunity for people to come into the game and Stephen O’Donnell was excellent. Declan Gallagher played in the middle of a three back that people say we can’t play.
“Our three plants, McTominay, Gallagher and Cooper, were excellent. “I think you have to give the defenders a little credit for the way the game went.”
Clarke added: “We know what we are trying to achieve, we know what we are trying to do. We’ve been working with players and it’s a system that players got comfortable with last month, or we wouldn’t have used the same thing again.
“If the players are not comfortable with that, then we have the personnel and the knowledge to switch to four if we want to. We could do that in the game. It’s about building something that helps us move forward. If you can play with two systems, it will always help you. ”
Clarke singled out David Marshall, whom he brought over from the international wilderness when he was appointed Scotland’s coach last year, for his contribution to the nerve-racking win.
The Derby County goalkeeper denied PSV Eindhoven forward Eran Zahavi on Israel’s first penalty kick to give the national team an advantage on the penalty shoot-out that he managed to maintain.
“David has been very good since I called him,” said his manager. “It was actually one of the first phone calls I made when I got the job to try to get me to participate again.
“He has established himself as number one and made great saves in games last month and then obviously saved on penalties.
“All the goalkeepers had done their homework with Stevie Woods – maybe you heard Woodsy yelling from the touchline, telling Marsh where to go, where to stand, how to do it!
“They had an idea of where each penalty was going because they do their homework well. For David to save one of possibly one of his banker takers, Zahavi, that set us up really well to win the shooting. ”
[ad_2]
