11 hours ago
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When the final whistle was blown, the Scotland players scampered away like thieves in the night. After pulling off an act of grand larceny, this was the great Hampden heist.
Daylight robbery? Yeah, and then some.
For 60 minutes, Steve Clarke’s side produced a performance that would have made the eyes bleed. Scotland were utterly abysmal all over the pitch.
When Kostas Tsimikas fired Greece ahead just after the hour, the only blessing for Scotland was that it was the first time the ball had rippled Angus Gunn’s net all night.
The Greeks could - and probably should - have been two or three goals up at that point. Vangelis Pavlidis missed an absolute sitter early in the first half, Giorgos Masouras doing likewise early in the second.
Just as they had done here back in March when they romped to a 3-0 win, they were in the process of teaching Scotland another lesson. Truthfully, it could have been anything.
Ryan Christie sparked the fightback against Greece with the equaliser at Hampden
Lewis Ferguson then grabbed Scotland's second goal to give them an unlikely lead
Scotland substitute Lyndon Dykes added a third goal late on to leave Greece stunned
Clarke’s side were chasing shadows. They couldn’t get near their opponents. Nor could they apply any pressure on the ball as the visitors popped it around for fun.
The crowd at Hampden were beginning to jeer the paucity of Scotland’s performance as they sunk deeper and deeper, failing to show any composure or ambition as they constantly passed the ball backwards.
There was also total bemusement as to why Clarke had taken off Ben Gannon-Doak. Granted, the young winger wasn’t overly influential in the match.
But that could have been said of any Scotland player in what was to that point a complete non-performance. At least Gannon-Doak offers pace and an outlet that few others in this squad can match.
Someone in Naples must have kidnapped Scott McTominay and sent an impostor over here. McTominay has been off the boil for Napoli this season after his title-winning heroics and, like so many of his team-mates, he looked miles off it last night.
Scotland just could not keep the ball. The decision to leave Billy Gilmour, our most technically proficient midfielder, on the bench looked more and more suspect.
Then, genuinely out of nowhere, and against all the evidence of what was unfolding on the pitch, the roof came off this place.
When Ryan Christie equalised shortly after the opener from Tsimikas, it was like a switch had been flicked. Suddenly, there was a game on.
Second best all over the pitch for the first hour, Scotland suddenly remembered how to play football. They applied pressure on Greece in a way they were never able to do previously.
With his first goal for Scotland, Lewis Ferguson put the home side ahead with 10 minutes remaining, before Lyndon Dykes wrapped it up in injury time.
The World Cup dream is still very much within Scotland’s grasp. Never mind a meeting with Katy Perry in the team hotel.
Simple Minds was a more fitting soundtrack on a night when Scotland looked dead and buried, only to produce a result which keeps the dream very much Alive and Kicking.
