Scotland 0-3 Brazil


Scotland are nervously awaiting to learn their World Cup fate after being punished by Brazil.

Steve Clarke’s side knew a draw would guarantee qualification beyond the group stage to a major final for the first time but their mistake was ruthlessly punished by the five-time winners to leave their hopes of progressing to the last-32 hanging by a thread among the eight best third-placed sides.

“I think we’re going home,” Clark later admitted.

It took Brazil just seven minutes to open the scoring at the Miami Stadium. Scott McKenna fed the ball to Vinicius Jr. who slotted home past Angus Gunn.

The Real Madrid striker capitalized on another mistake, this time by Jack Hendry, but a VAR check ruled out the goal for a foul on the Scotland defender.

Lewis Ferguson cleared an effort off the line before Vinicius Junior made it 2-0 as he took advantage of another error, with Angus Gunn and Nathan Patterson at fault.

Vinicius Jr.'s second goal was disallowed for a foul on Jack Hendry
Image:
Vinicius Jr.’s second goal was disallowed for a foul on Jack Hendry

Scotland looked brighter after the break with Kieran Tierney denied by Alison Baker, but Brazil couldn’t do it.

Bruno Guimaraes was too strong for Kenny McLean and he sent the ball to Mathews Cunha.

Brazil progress as winners of Group C while Scotland face a nervous wait to find out if they will finish as one of the top eight third-placed teams.

Key moments from Miami…

  • 7: Goal! Vinicius Jr was gifted by Brazilian opener Scott McKenna

  • 25: Unauthorized! Vinicius Jr. has the ball in the net but it’s ruled out due to a foul by Jack Hendry

  • 45: Off the line! Lewis Ferguson went close again when Vinicius Junior came to Scotland’s rescue

  • 45+3: Goal! Angus Gunn and Nathan Patterson are both at fault as Vinicius Junior make it 2-0.

  • 49: Save! Alison Baker defies Kieran Tierney

  • 52: Save! Gunn denied Vinicius Jr. his hat trick

  • 60: Goal! Mathews Cunha shoots

  • 81: So close to four! The ball finds Vinicius Jr in the box but he turns his shot on target.

  • 90+6: Save! Alison Scott denied McTominay what could have been an important consolation

Analysis: An anxious wait after a punishing night

Get it wrong, and you will be punished. Especially at this level.

There were occasional attempts, but a lack of concentration combined with Brazil’s brilliance proved costly.

Scotland will have to wait until Sunday to find out if they qualify for the knockout stages for the first time.

Laurence Shankland started as the lone striker and gave nothing away.

Scott McTominay wasn’t quite on pace, though came close to scoring late on.

Penalty for almost every mistake. Mistakes that could have been easily avoided.

Scotland can have no complaints about the result. They have to be better if they still qualify.

What does the result mean?

Group C winners Brazil will face Group F runners-up in the last 32.

As it stands, Japan Second in Group F, but both Sweden And The Netherlands Could still finish as runners-up.

Meanwhile, morocco The winners of Group F will face off. As above, the Netherlands currently top the group, but both Japan and Sweden could go ahead of the Dutch as group winners.

McGinn: Qualification now ‘unlikely’

Scotland Midfielder John McGinn to talk BBC:

“We conceded goals at bad times against a team that can punish you with quality. But we had a few chances ourselves.

“You can see the lads are wasted. We were short on quality but we gave absolutely everything. The lads are empty. We’ve given ourselves a tougher chance; it’s unlikely now but we’ll see.

“We were probably lucky that the (second) goal wasn’t disallowed.

“They allowed us to keep the ball and at this level, if you make a mistake you can get punished. We know we have to be better. It’s raw for us at the moment but hopefully the journey is not over.”

Robertson: The wait will be ‘terrible’

Scotland captain Andy Robertson to talk BBC:

“Frustration. Making mistakes. We started the game well and kept the ball well.

“They lulled us into a false sense of security; we thought we had more time on the ball. Our initial reaction was just one of frustration.

“At certain moments, we let ourselves down tonight. At times, we were comfortable on the ball and got ourselves into dangerous areas. But against this team, we can’t afford the mistakes we were making.

“We were punished for almost every mistake. It’s not good enough when you’re 3-0 down. We can only blame ourselves.

“Individually, time will tell. We have to take a day or two to see what happened. As a collective, we didn’t want to put ourselves in a position to expect favors. If you ask me now, I don’t think it’s enough. Time will tell.

“The next few days will be horrible.”

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