[FM16] If I had a Nicol for every goal, I'd have just over six dollars

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career







We dropped in the rankings, but kind of expected after our ****-the-bed moment against Ireland. If we make it to the Euros, expect that to rise.



Holland complete the FM-world resurgence by topping the rankings after their great campaign. We helped of course, by denying Germany full points.

In other news, the squad announcement for the playoffs came what seemed like days after the squad finally sloped back into Glasgow Airport, following an almighty Hamburg bender.





Robert Snodgrass finally makes his comeback after his real-world kneecap injury kept him out for almost a year. Good news, as Matt Phillips misses out. Liam Cooper and Scott Bain are in line for their first cap, but if I was them, I wouldn't hold my breath.





Brought up three strikers, sacrificing a midfielder, due to Naismith missing through injury. Still no place for Steven Fletcher, as he's still a knob.

Robert Snodgrass

As I said, delighted to welcome him back. He was really starting to show his worth for Scotland, and earned a move to Hull, when he got a horrendous kneecap injury. He's played two games since he's been back, and probably still some way short of his best, but the injury to Matt Phillips meant he had to be involved.

Craig Gordon

I talked about him in my very first squad, and here he is, still there, and still number one. A wonderful story for the guy, and hopefully we can give him a few more caps before he finally retires.

Scott Brown

He may well be coming to the end of his Scotland career. Should we struggle in World Cup Qualifying, he'll be almost 35 by the time the 2020 tournament kicks off. If I was really in front of him, I'd be telling him just that. This is his chance to lead us to a tournament.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



Scott Brown now becomes massively important as James McArthur drops out. Stuart Armstrong will replace him.



The fixtures for the first leg. A few tasty little ties, but can't say I have any preferences in there. Most of them will probably sit in our pot should they qualify.



And then just before we set off, Alan McGregor calls in. Cameron McKay, U19's keeper steps in.



That being said, we did manage to put together a team in the end. Snodgrass is thrown right in there on the right wing, opposite Matt Ritchie. Anya moves to left back (he's so versatile...)/ Apart from that, a settled side. Fletcher gets the nod over Brown due to me being more confident that he won't get sent off for the 2nd leg. Gauld, Morrison and Rhodes to hopefully provide the inspiration in the center.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Good luck in the playoffs.

[Reedy_1988]

Throughly enjoyed following this career thread. Excellent result in Germany, fingers crossed you manage to qualify.

One question though, how come you don't seem to use Ross McCormack?

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



Slovenia vs Scotland

European Qualifiers Playoff

13th November 2015

Sportni Park Stozice, Ljubljana







One foot in the European Championships. We got it out of the way early, racing into a 2-0 lead after 16 minutes. Two precious away goals to take to Hampden, and as long as we don't completely shoot our bolt, we should make it through.



Three draws in the other matches, anyone's game there.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



Slovenia vs Scotland

European Qualifiers Playoff Second Leg

13th November 2015

Hampden Park, Glasgow



Two injuries in the lead up to the second leg as James Morrison and Robert Snodgrass bow out. Snoddy is unsurprising after I threw him into his first match in a long time. Ross McCormack let's a call up, along with the very highly rated Ryan Christie.



Three matches finely poised, one match hopefully not. Big game for us for so many reasons. Obviously because this could net us a European Championships spot, but also because it's a window into what to expect from Slovenia next year in the World Cup Qualifiers.



We name a mostly unchanged side, should be enough to edge us towards a win. I'd even take a draw.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



Slovenia vs Scotland

European Qualifiers Playoff Second Leg

13th November 2015

Hampden Park, Glasgow







And we're there.

We started like a house on fire again, racing into another 2-0 lead, and at that point it was pretty much plain sailing. Kevin Kampl got a goal back, but at that point they needed another three to go through. They couldn't manage another one, and we are going to France.



Slovakia, Romania and Norway join us with comfortable second leg wins.

[DazRTaylor]

Och aye! The wee result was never in doubt! Deep fried Mars Bars all round I think.

Well done.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career









The inaugural 24 team Euros yields a few surprises, but in the main it's the same old faces participating.







We rise to the dizzy heights of 16th in the World thanks to our two wins against Slovenia

[forameuss]

Och aye! The wee result was never in doubt! Deep fried Mars Bars all round I think.

Well done.

Deep fried mars bar? Nah. Fried Pizza, that's where it's at.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



My first job offer, and it comes from Hull. Of course I'm not interested in club management in this save, but obviously nice to be talked about.



Also got a nice little interview with the press about it that let me give my reasons. Another nice little feature to have.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The time has come for us to find out who we're going to face in the Group Stage of the Euros.









We're comfortably in the bottom pot, so we are going to be facing some tough teams. I'd like to avoid Portugal and Italy in the 2nd pot, but from the top pot, is there really any side we'd like to get? If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best though.



Well isn't that a doozy...

We faced Slovenia in the play-offs, and now we'll face the Auld Enemy in the group stage too. An absolutely enormous match. Greece should be a good draw, but the way they've played so far, it'll be a tough game. Finland round out the group, and to be honest they're a bit of an unknown quantity. We play Greece first, then England, so a tough run of fixtures. The way I see it, we're going to need at least four points to make it through to the next round as one of the best third placed sides. If we can beat Greece, then the England game may not matter. As long as we beat Finland...



Norway are the missing team (I like the way they set out the draw before you draw the last team). Definitely some interesting ties in there.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



Now that the fixtures are out, it's time to organise travel, and work out who we can play in the run up to the tournament. My thinking for these fixtures has varied, but I've decided to go easy on the squad for this one. We'll play Wales at Hampden before we set off, then two against smaller French sides in country. I usually like to play a big team at home before we head off, but I don't want our morale to be beaten down.





I then decided to make use of our March date to test ourselves. Holland are top of the rankings, so we'll welcome them to Hampden in a real test of our abilities.

[Rikulec]

Group B will certainly be interesting.

[DazRTaylor]

Excellent chance of getting out of that group and getting home after the postcards for a change.

[forameuss]

Excellent chance of getting out of that group and getting home after the postcards for a change.

Oh I don't know. Iceland and Greece will prove tough opponents, so we'll probably finish third behind those two...

*backs away, whistling*

[MichaelBrown]

Good luck for the future, this is one of those careers that I hope last for a number of years.

KUTGW

[DazRTaylor]

Oh I don't know. Iceland and Greece will prove tough opponents, so we'll probably finish third behind those two...

*backs away, whistling*

I would bet my mortgage you won't finish behind Iceland.

It is Finland in your group, not Iceland

[forameuss]

I would bet my mortgage you won't finish behind Iceland.

It is Finland in your group, not Iceland

Finland, Iceland...same thing.

I think I got away with that one

[dllu]

Finland, Iceland...same thing.

Remind me where you're from again - Wales, is it...?

[DazRTaylor]

Remind me where you're from again - Wales, is it...?

I thought it was Northern Ireland? :D

[deltablue]

With 4/6 3rd placed teams going through, surely not even Scotland can mess that up.

[kingjericho]

That photo of Craig Levein in the OP looks just like Nigel McGuinness. Anyway, good luck

[cplpeters1900]

Somehow managed to predict your group before I scrolled down from viewing the pots!

[DodgeeD]

Congrats on qualifying for the Euros.

And I never realised Hitman was Scottish before

[forameuss]

Remind me where you're from again - Wales, is it...?

I thought it was Northern Ireland? :D

potato, po-tah-to

With 4/6 3rd placed teams going through, surely not even Scotland can mess that up.

Don't be so harsh DB, of course we can mess that up! Positivity!

That photo of Craig Levein in the OP looks just like Nigel McGuinness. Anyway, good luck

And strangely enough, Craig Levein was in need of several Jawbreaker Lariats in his time.

Somehow managed to predict your group before I scrolled down from viewing the pots!

I had a feeling I'd get England, which only grew as teams were drawn. Of all the pot 1 sides, in any draw, I always hope we get England. Quality-wise, of course we can't stand up to them, but there's always that extra little bit of needle in the game that means we can maybe bring them down to our level. Having them 2nd isn't great though - a poor result in the first game makes the England game a must-win. Not a great position to be in.

Congrats on qualifying for the Euros.

And I never realised Hitman was Scottish before

Cheers DodgeeD. I'm sure one of the clones was Scottish. The rumours that he has his eyes on Roy Hodgson are unfounded though. He likes the man.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



A bit of news prior to the Euros as we plan our training camp. I'd say this was unrealistic...but...well, the SFA would probably send us to somewhere with below average facilities in real life, so it's probably spot on. If we have running water, it'll be a plus.



Terrible news for Scott Brown though. The timelines make it seem as though he'll be back in training just before the tournament, but not really long enough to mount any kind of comeback. I said a while back that players like him are unlikely to get another chance - looks like his last chance has been taken from him.

Also, recently I've been attracting some attention from other clubs. Hull had already approached me, as you saw in a previous post, but that wasn't the end of it. West Ham, Swansea, Southampton and Leicester all wanted my services, but as before I'm just not interested. Club football is far from my mind at this stage.

End of Year Party

I'm not sure I recorded what happened at the previous end of year (I'm not even sure there was one) but here's this time around. Basically, everything that usually happens in the off-season in club football, like the hall of fame induction, happens at the turn of the year in international football. Nice time to have it - means I can invite the squad out, get them all blootered, then send them back to their clubs shaking my head and saying how it all got a bit out of hand.





Hard to argue with the opinion of the supporters really. Everyone in that 11 deserves to be there. Will be interesting to see how the overall best eleven shapes up if I'm here long term.



At the much less lauded Ballon D'Or awards, there was a surprise. David Silva beat Professional Midget and Greatest-Man-in-the-World Lionel Messi - along with Monstrous Man-child Cristiano Ronaldo - to the gold. Interesting to see voting points added to the award now, which shows that Silva murdered the competition, with only Ronaldo coming anywhere close. For the record, I voted for the top 3 average rated players, which I think was Messi, Silva, then Rodriguez (James, not Jay). I really don't care about this award given that no Scottish players were involved, and was tempted to go all radical and spoil my ballot paper by writing Matt Phillips' name on it three times. Decided against it though.



And to round off the year nicely, we've soared to a record 12th position in the rankings.





You may notice something ominous in that top 20 though. Although we've closed ground on England, Finland have slipped right up behind us, and Greece aren't too far away. Our group in the summer - as long as things stay similar in terms of rankings of course - will contain the 10th, 12th, 14th and 17th best sides in the World. Tight.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career







A final chance for some players to impress prior to the main squad, but to be honest, I'm pretty clear on who is going to be coming with me to France. We face Holland, so a pretty considerable test, and the best side we've faced since Germany.



Stewart gets a run-out on the left to see what he's got, but the rest of the side is probably as good as can be expected.







We rode out the storm, and ended up getting a wonderful result. Although, seeing Scott Bain as man of the match suggests what kind of game it was. Still, to get that kind of result even as we changed up half our team in the second half is pretty good.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career





Appears to be a couple of screenshots mysteriously missing, so only have ones after I announced the squad. No real surprises, apart from possibly James Morrison and Stuart Armstrong being dropped. They were hardly must-picks anyway, so will hopefully not be missed.



The bookies don't think we can win it, and I agree with them. Where will our tournament end though? My heart says Quarter Finals, but realistically, if we make the 2nd round I'll be happy.



Our final pre-tournament friendly at home came and went, with Wales falling to a well-deserved 2-1 defeat. Not quite the sparkling performance we hoped for, but it'll do. The important thing was to exercise our players and let them wave goodbye to the country for a few weeks.



And it's almost time. We're off to France.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career





Two friendlies against local opposition rounded out our preparations, but I have to say, we didn't sparkle in either. Of course we won, but I would have liked to have been more comfortable about it. Still, we can't really complain, and we go into the first group game on the back of three wins.



We'll be without Steven Naismith for that game too, as he picked up a minor injury. Very disappointing, but at least he's not out for the duration. I'd expect him back for the England game.





And a final run-down on the squad as we head into that first game. We're ready.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

10th June 2016



11th June 2016



12th June 2016



13th June 2016

SCOTLAND vs Greece



Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse

Group D Match 1



A pretty standard approach to this game. We'll go out to win it, not to just survive. We'll play with natural width through Anya and Phillips. But there's two decisions that took a bit of thinking. Scott Bain starts in goal and Scott Allan starts behind the strikers. Both big decisions, but both justified in my opinion. Bain will be our number 1 in a few years anyway, and we have options to replace Allan should he not perform.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

13th June 2016

SCOTLAND vs Greece



Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse

Group D Match 1







When we went 1-0 down, I feared the worst, but credit to Jordan Rhodes for getting us back in the game. Greece had most of the play too, so to come out with a point and not make the England match a must win can be considered a successful evening.



With England beating Finland yesterday, things look much as expected when the group was drawn. Can we do something against our bitter rivals?

[MarcxD]

Good read! Will be following this for sure. Good luck at the Euro's.

By the way, in my game Scotland (AI) made it to the final, so just know that nothing is impossible...

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

14th June 2016



15th June 2016



16th June 2016



17th June 2016

SCOTLAND vs England



Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille

Group D Match 2

Not since 1996 have we met England in a competitive tournament finals. There's just something about these games that means, even when it's a friendly, there's that extra little bit of interest. After all, it's the oldest fixture in International football. There have been 112 meetings in total, with 47 coming out in favour of England, 41 for Scotland and 24 draws. Of course, most of the wins for Scotland are well in the past, with England very much having the upper hand recently. Hopefully we can change that now.



We have to go for it, as even a draw may prove to be not enough should Finland prove difficult in the final match. We really need a win, and what a win it would be. Craig Gordon returns in goal, with Snodgrass and Ritchie replacing Anya and Allan respectively. Young Ryan Gauld replaces the experience of Darren Fletcher in midfield.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

17th June 2016

SCOTLAND vs England



Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille

Group D Match 2









We were absolutely battered in truth, but in the end it's the score that matters, and it ended 2-1 to Scotland. One of those games that reaffirms your faith in all things FM. When Raheem Sterling skipped through and slotted home the opening goal, it honestly looked as though we were going to drift off into the night without much of a whimper. But then just seven minutes later Robert Snodgrass arrived from deep to smash home an equaliser, and suddenly it was game on. Well, for a few minutes. Then normal service was resumed as England camped us deep in our own half. It was shot, after shot, after shot, but luckily most of them were off target. As the clock ticked down, I was faced with the choice to either shut up shop or go for it. I leaned towards the latter, and threw on Ikechi Anya on the left, changing the left winger to an attack role.

Then it happened. Leigh Griffiths picked up the ball, held it up, and then lofted a wonderful reverse ball over the defence and into Anya's path. He used his pace to charge into the box, and then calmly slotted it past Joe Hart. Cue absolute bedlam, and cue the retreat.

England spent the remaining minutes trying to break the door down, but we just about held out for a famous win.





See? Told you Roy Hodgson was a good man.



Greece top the group, but they still have to play England. We can qualify in first place if we better Greece's result.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

18th June 2016



19th June 2016



20th June 2016



21st June 2016

SCOTLAND vs Finland



Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux

Group D Match 3

It's a lovely situation to be in to have our destiny in our own hands, but it does bring a good amount of pressure. Still, if you'd told me before the tournament that we'd go into the final group game with a very good chance of topping said group, then I'd have taken that. If Greece can do something in their game, we may be denied top spot, but that could force England out of contention. So many things still up for grabs.



We'll be up against an unfamiliar formation, and one we should have a width advantage on. Of course, we will be outnumbered in midfield, so will that be a factor? I'm not in the business of totally changing how we play to suit an opponent, and would much rather execute our own gameplan rather than adapt to counter another one. You know, like a terrible manager.

Rhodes is rested, with England match heroes Griffiths and Anya both coming in. Naismith returns from injury to support Leigh in attack.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

21st June 2016

SCOTLAND vs Finland



Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux

Group D Match 3



Yup. That's the sound of our bottle well and truly crashing. Words can't describe how badly we blew it, especially given we were 2-0 up after 19 minutes. Only ourselves to blame, and even as we dominated possession, we couldn't keep Finland at bay, and little by little they clawed their way back into the game.





Gutting.



To make matters worse, England also won. Bad not just from a rivals standpoint, but also because it pushes us below both them and Greece. We now face a nervous wait to see whether we qualify as one of the best 3rd placed sides. With four points, I imagine we will, but one of the giants await in the next round.

22nd June 2016







Russia and Serbia could only manage 2 and 3 points between them and miss out on the knockout rounds, but we made it. Just.



But who will we face as a result?



Only the hosts. Nae bother...

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

25th June 2016



Turkey shocked Europe by dispatching Spain fairly handily, before Germany did what was expected, beating the Czech Republic in the teatime game. It took a 117th minute extra-time winner, but Ukraine then sprung a shock of their own, knocking out Italy, who seem to lurch from either winning tournaments, to getting put out in odd circumstances. I blame Calciopoli.

26th June 2016

France vs SCOTLAND



Stade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Etienne

1st Knockout Round



In for a penny, in for a pound.

I got the feeling that if we went for a more defensive formation, we'd blunt what little attacking threat we had. We could try and hold out for penalties, but I don't fancy our chances of doing that. Our only chance is to try and give them something to worry about at their end, hopefully enough that they don't bother us as much. Empty hopes, probably, but we'll see.

Another settled defence, but our midfield switches around again. Rhodes returns, as does Darren Fletcher. For the fourth game in the row, we name a different combination for the supporting three. Gauld is unleashed further forward, supported by Ritchie and Snodgrass on the left and right.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

26th June 2016

France vs SCOTLAND



Stade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Etienne

1st Knockout Round





France went 2-0 up after 19 minutes, just like we did against Finland. Unfortunately there was going to be no comeback this time, and they added another two to make the scoreline look pretty desperate for us. Having Paul Caddis sent off after 40 minutes didn't help, but to be fair we were never in it with 11 players, let alone 10. Very disappointing.







England had already booked their place in the quarter finals with a good win against Croatia, leaving Holland to round off the evening with a second half winner from Memphis Depay. I only found out after the fact, I was face down in a bowl of whisky by that point.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships

27th June 2016



Greece continued to defy their real life status by reaching the Quarter Final, beating the Hipster's Favourite Belgium in a match that shot its entire load between the 15th and 17th minutes. Three goals in three minutes, then nothing for the rest of the game. Terrible value.

Switzerland had already beaten Austria in the earlier game, tieing up our Quarter Final line-up.

30th June 2016



As the quarter finals began, Paris burned when France were eliminated following a dour 0-0 draw. Well, dour goal-wise. Turkey tried their best to liven things up by spending 31 minutes of the second half with ten-man, and then the remaining 17 minutes of the second half - not to mention half an hour of extra time - with 9 men. How France didn't capitalise, and ended up getting dumped out on penalties, I have no idea.





A quick aside from the Championships to bring you two job offers. My stock must really be rising, as arguably the most reputable clubs in the division have made job offers. I'm not interested in either, of course, but still nice to have.

1st July 2016



Germany's tournament ends at the hands of England after extra-time. It's like 1966 all over again.

2nd July 2016



Finally we have a game ending in regulation time with more than a goal in it. Switzerland outclass Ukraine to move into the semis, and book a match with England.

3rd July 2016



Greece finally come up short as the Dutch continue their sparkling tournament to take a 2-1 win and book a semi-final against the Turks, who will just need to hope they can field enough players after their war with France. Greece pushed hard for an equaliser, but maybe too hard as they went down to 10 men.

6th July 2016



Well there's a turn-up for the books. The Dutch dismantled by the Turk onslaught, going behind in the 1st minute, and then further behind in the 11th. By half-time it was all over, and Holland had literally no answer for the remainder of the game. Into the final Turkey go.

7th July 2016



Finally a classic in the 2nd semi-final as England and Switzerland duke it out for 120 minutes, before impeccable Swiss timing wins them the match on penalties. Heartbreak for England, and now we face a final that no-one would have predicted - Turkey versus Switzerland.

10th July 2016



And the tournament ends with another absolute cracker. It didn't look like that initially as both sides tried to feel each other out. On the hour mark, the deadlock was broken, leading to a manic 10 minute spell where Switzerland thought they had it won, before Turkey hit back a minute later. They roared back, equalising in the 86th, before the match went back to a cagey affair. It took penalties to separate them, and for the second match running, Switzerland won out.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

European Championships Fallout



Glowing reference from the board after our 1st Knockout Round exit. I wouldn't say I was delighted, more pleased. It was very much a question of "what might have been". Had we got a draw against Finland, we'd have faced a gauntlet of Belgium, Holland and Turkey. Not exactly an easy run, but I feel Belgium may have been easier than France. Had we won against Finland, we'd have faced Croatia, Germany and then eventual Champions Switzerland. I guess there are no easy draws, but I can't help but feeling that that first Finland goal was the turning point for our campaign, the point where everything went South.



I didn't mention it when I covered the Finland game, but Anya scored an absolute peach, and deservedly got recognition for it. Dribbled past two, faked through two more, and then slotted it home past the keeper. My coaches keep telling me he isn't the best option on the left, but they clearly know nothing after his performances in the group stage.



Quite surprised that we haven't risen more in the rankings. I guess beating England wouldn't have netted us that many points given we were only 2 positions below them in the rankings, just like Greece wouldn't have gotten us too many either. Defeats to Finland and France certainly won't have helped, but at least we didn't drop too much.



England's latter performance in the competition shoots them up, along with Holland and Belgium. Switzerland up to 5th, rising 14 places, but still not enough to wrestle control away from the European giants.

[forameuss]

Good read! Will be following this for sure. Good luck at the Euro's.

By the way, in my game Scotland (AI) made it to the final, so just know that nothing is impossible...

Unfortunately, it was impossible for us! I've seen that happen too, and as you can see, two "strange" teams made it to the final. Unfortunately it wasn't us.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Squeezed through the group before an expected thumping from France. A decent effort.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career

A Bit of Reflection

So that's me completed the first section of this career. I didn't know how far I'd get, but now that I've gone past this tournament, there's no way I'm stopping here. Really enjoyed the campaign, and really looking forward to getting to manage from the beginning of a campaign, rather than four games in. And what a group to start in - England await, a side probably hungry for revenge following our European Championship game.

Things look bright for us too, although perhaps not as bright as I'd like. We have quite a few ageing players, but we also have some very bright young prospects. I've been watching a few coming up from the youth squads too, so if they can develop, we shouldn't have too much of a problem transitioning.

As for how long this'll go, it was only meant to be a stopgap until the full release and the editor (it'll probably be Gibraltar Part 43) but I want to at least clear out the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments, and perhaps the 2020 and 2024 European Championships. That could all change though. At the moment though, I'm absolutely loving having games that mean a lot straight away.

So on we go, on a road that hopefully leads to Russia, and not Rutherglen.

[forameuss]

Squeezed through the group before an expected thumping from France. A decent effort.

Yeah, totally. I don't know how we can put in such a professional performance against England (and for 20 minutes of the Finland game to be honest) and then blow it right at the end. The opposition that awaited us should we have finished 1st and 2nd wasn't much easier, but I'd have fancied my chances more than against the hosts. Still, it's better than getting put out in the group stages.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The Road to Russia

World Cup 2018 Qualifying





We ring the changes as we go into another campaign, naming a changed squad from the one that slumped out of the Euros. Joe Bryan, Ryan Jack and Greg Stewart all feature, with the latter being one of only two strikers. He'll probably feature in the friendly at least, on the advice of my assistant, so will be interesting to see what he can offer. Elsewhere, there's a return for Scott Brown, who missed the tournament through injury. I thought his Scotland career may have been over, but we'll give him a squad place to start with and see how things go.



But we won't be giving him the captaincy. This isn't something I usually put much thought into. I usually just keep the captain the same until he retires, then take staff advice to appoint the next one. This time though, I wanted to change things up, given that Scott Brown is unlikely to feature heavily. So Craig Gordon comes in as captain, my thinking being that he'll be my number one at least for this campaign. Darren Fletcher remains vice-captain, as he is going to be an important player for us with his experience. I'm fairly sure one of the two will always be in our side. If not, well the captaincy is a pretty antiquated concept anyway.



The fans disagree with my reasoning though. I can't say I care that much - I just beat England guys, get some perspective!

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The Road to Russia

World Cup 2018 Qualifying

SCOTLAND vs Estonia



Rugby Park, Kilmarnock

31st August 2016

We head out to Ayrshire to Rugby Park in Kilmarnock for a friendly against Estonia. Nice idea to go on tour for friendlies - not something that the SFA is known to do recently, although they have in the past.



A bit of an experimental side, trying a few known players in different positions, and handing a debut to Joe Bryan.







Well that was...uninspiring. These occasions often are, especially as up to 12 subs can be made across both sides. Still though, to have that level of domination over a relative minnow and not come out with a win is not good. It doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, but given we have an extremely important tie right off the bat against Slovenia coming back, I would have really liked to get a win.

The only players to come out with positive marks are our center back pairing Murray Wallace and Liam Cooper. They did very well amongst the sea of mediocrity.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The Road to Russia

World Cup 2018 Qualifying

SCOTLAND vs Estonia



Stožice Sports Park, Ljubljana, Slovenia

4th September 2016



Ikechi Anya suffered an injury just before the Slovenia game, so Robert Snodgrass gets a late call-up. Not sure Anya would have started, but it's still a blow to lost someone like that from the squad.



Slovenia start as favourites in our opening World Cup battle, and probably with good reason. This is not the sort of match we wanted to have straight off the bat (we have Malta away first in real life) but we have to get these matches out of the way some time. The one thing that's sticking in my mind is in campaigns past, we've gotten bad results in our opening matches, and been pretty much out of it very early on. Should we lose this one, we won't necessarily be out, but we'll be several steps behind where we need to be. This is already mightily important.



That's compounded by Slovakia and England - our other rivals in the group - having fairly winnable games. England should get a very comfortable one at home to Malta, and Slovakia surely must win too. We could be near the bottom with a defeat.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The Road to Russia

World Cup 2018 Qualifying

SCOTLAND vs Estonia



Stožice Sports Park, Ljubljana, Slovenia

4th September 2016







We edged pretty much every stat in the game, but the scoreline. Slovenia had no clear cut chances, and scored two goals. We had two, and scored none. Sometimes, that's the way it goes. The other stat we were behind on though, was overall average rating. Slovenia absolutely beasted us on that one, and on that count alone, it's clear they deserved the win.





Slovakia and England, as expected, won their games, and after the first fixture date, we're only kept off the bottom by one goal. We have Lithuania and Malta up next, both at home. Six points in that would put us back in contention. Anything dropped, and you have to say it's all over. Already.



We drop two places to 20th after those two dreadful results.

[forameuss]

We have a dream, of not coming home too soon

A Scotland Career



The Road to Russia

World Cup 2018 Qualifying

Right, time to stand up and be counted. We now face two games at Hampden against the weakest sides in the group, and six points is an absolute must.





Chris Martin returns and we could see a debut for Brad McKay. We need goals though, and I think our attacking options will give us that. Let's just say, I won't be setting the side out conservatively here.







We start with a match against Lithuania. The first really crunch game though happens in Slovakia as they face England. Most would say that those two will be the top two come the end of the group, but we could see the order look a bit clearer after this one. Of course, ourselves and Slovenia will be hoping to ruin that.