11 hours ago
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There is every chance that Steve Clarke’s farewell tour as Scotland manager will see a scramble for tickets for some extended dates in North America next summer.
What a wonderful position his team have put themselves in as the midway point of this truncated qualifying campaign is reached.
Seven points from jousts with Denmark, Belarus and Greece is a truly excellent return. Better, certainly, than most would have anticipated at this juncture.
While it would be just a little premature to start planning in earnest for a return to the Greatest Show on Earth, optimism now abounds.
Provided Clarke’s players defeat Belarus for a second time at Hampden on Sunday, as they should, their path to the finals will really open up.
While Greece in Athens and the Danes in Glasgow makes for a taxing home stretch, there’s a renewed trust in the side to get the job done. How could there not be after this?
Steve Clarke was delighted after his side fought back to three points against Greece
Scotland's equaliser was subject to a prolonged VAR check but was eventually given
Ryan Christie's goal then sparked a resurgence of sorts from the Scots at Hampden
Second best by some distance for an hour, Clarke’s men were deservedly a goal down. For all the world, it felt like the thumping Greece dished out here in March was on the cards again.
With Ivan Jovanovic’s side dominating the contest, you’d have taken a point in a heartbeat. Truthfully, in the context of what we were witnessing, it would have been a more than acceptable outcome.
Something just stirred deep inside Clarke’s players as they re-spotted the ball following Kostas Tsimikas’ opener. Something that was lost for too long last year. Something which has returned lately and might just take them all the way to the World Cup.
While you could not understate the important of Billy Gilmour’s introduction, to a man, Clarke’s players puffed the chests out and refused to accept a defeat which seemed inevitable as they laboured for so long.
When Ryan Christie levelled, those in Dark Blue seemed to grow a foot in stature. When Lewis Ferguson plundered a second with 10 minutes remaining, it suddenly felt like they had an extra man on the pitch.
A truly bizarre game ended in farcical fashion with Lyndon Dykes firing into an empty net after an extraordinary blunder by the Greek goalkeeper.
For years, Scotland have played well and lost football matches. Glorious failure has been the curse of generations. How sweet this role reversal was. How close a place at the World Cup for the first time in 28 years now feels as a result.
Greece will take some time to come to terms with how they lost it. Frankly, given how well they played for an hour, they will return home feeling as if they were victims of a mugging.
Short on fitness, the sublime attacking presence of Konstantinos Karetsas was left on the bench. Given the way the 17-year-old ran the show in March, that news would have been greeted with considerable relief in the home dressing room.
Clarke dropped Christie back into the holding role he’s been fulfilling so well at Bournemouth. Ben Gannon-Doak, a young man now shouldering the hopes of a nation, was deployed down the left.
Anyone believing that Greece couldn’t possibly control the game in the manner they’d done here seven months ago was quickly made to think again. It was like a re-enactment.
While Clarke’s players looked content to let their opponents have the ball at the back, the visitors strung together pass after pass. They switched the play and switched it again. They passed and probed. It quickly threatened to get dispiriting.
What a talent they have in Christos Tzolis, the left-sided Club Brugge attacker. He began his night with a back heel and was soon pirouetting away from dark blue jerseys.
Full-back Aaron Hickey's injury was a negative on the night for Scotland
His sharp exchange with Tasos Bakasetas carved Scotland open. Bakasetas’ cross only needed a solid connection from Vangelis Pavlidis to open the scoring. Remarkably, from three yards out, he scuffed it.
Greece had Scotland where they wanted them. They hunted in packs and shut off passing lines. Che Adams cut a frustrated figure. There was just nothing to engage an expectant home support.
While Angus Gunn didn’t have that much to do, the threat from the visitors was nearly constant. Only Ferguson’s block prevented Bakasetas’ strike from working the keeper.
It was hard to see any signs of life. On the rare occasions when a midfielder looked capable of opening the game up by taking the ball on the half turn, they went into their shells and took a safe option.
The lack of movement from middle to front was striking. Grant Hanley was booed when he played the ball back to his keeper, yet he had no option. The same soon applied to Ferguson.
Scott McTominay just could not get going. Slow to react as he contested a loose ball, he was dispossessed and relieved to see John Souttar get in the way of Pavlidis’ strike.
Gannon-Doak was also on the periphery of the contest. One dash up the flank reminded you that he was on the field.
Clarke’s men certainly weren’t helped by a picky display by referee Espen Eskas. Yet the Norwegian wasn’t the reason why they’d offered next to no threat as he blew for the interval.
Scotland continued to live dangerously when they re-emerged. The dancing feet of Tzolis took him deep into the box. Pavlidis played in Giorgos Masouras. Only he could explain how he failed to hit the target from seven yards.
Something or someone had to change. Aaron Hickey’s withdrawal was forced through injury. Tony Ralston was stripped. Gilmour replaced the frustrated Gannon-Doak. Before either man had touched the ball, their side were behind.
It stemmed, inevitably, from Tzolis who had the vision to pick out Bakasetas. He fed Pavlidis whose strike was repelled by the grounded Souttar. On his toes, Tsimikas drilled the ball first-time under the despairing figure of Gunn.
You could not begrudge the visitors their lead. By the same token, no one could dispute that Scotland were fortunate to level just two minutes later.
Christie started and finished the move, his corner from the left making the Greek defence look unsure of itself for the first time.
Greece's Konstantinos Karetsas was denied by a wonder save from Angus Gunn
Nodded clear, Ralston returned it, then Grant Hanley got a touch. Ntinos Mavropanos’ clearance lacked purchase. Christie caught it sweetly from 12 yards and gave the supporters a moment to cherish.
On the ropes for so long, Scotland then started to come out swinging. Where had this been?
Adams had a strike on the turn deflected just wide. Now Hampden was roaring.
With 10 minutes of the 90 remaining, the roof nearly came off the old place. Andy Robertson’s free-kick had Greece floundering. The ball broke off Souttar. Good job Ferguson had no time to think about it as he lashed the ball into the roof of the net. What a turnaround.
Belatedly introduced, Karetsas dropped a shoulder and looked to have found the top corner with a curling strike. Gunn pulled off a magnificent stop.
Thankfully, we were to be spared a nerve-shredding finale. Three minutes into stoppage time, Greece keeper Kostas Tzolakis let a routine ball squirm from his grasp. Substitute Lyndon Dykes could hardly believe his luck and thumped the ball high into an unguarded net. Never in doubt!
