A year ago
Following their thrilling late comeback in the Euro 2024 qualifying match in Oslo, Scotland manager Steve Clarke praised the character and depth in his team.
Lyndon Dykes and substitute Kenny McLean scored goals in the closing four minutes of regular time to give the Group A leaders a 2-1 victory, shocking Norway with an unexpected comeback.
Scotland struggled to offer a threat and fell behind to Erling Haaland's 61st-minute penalty when the striker went down after Ryan Porteous grabbed hold of his jersey, and McLean was one of three substitutions Clarke made in the 79th minute.
Scotland increased their lead over Norway at the top of Group A to eight points when Spain sat out the match.
"I was happy with the performance," said Clarke. "We were disciplined and at times passed it fairly well.Obviously, playing against a strong Norwegian squad will put a lot of pressure on you. And we never gave up on our faith. We persevere to the end and receive our rewards.It conveys a lot about the temperament, spirit, and quality of the team from the bench. One trait we have with this group of players that I keep harping on is that they desire to do well for their nation.Additionally, I am putting top-notch players on the field when I look at the bench and realize I need to make adjustments to freshen it up.
The only thing that mattered was the timing. After we conceded the goal, I thought it would be best to just hold on for a little while to make sure the game didn't get away from us.After that, we had to try and win the game. It made sense to take out a defender and move John McGinn a little bit forward.As fresh legs to try to advance, we invited Kenny, Billy Gilmour, and Stuart Armstrong to the game. They were involved in most of the best stuff toward the conclusion of the game.Even Dominic (Hyam) joins in at the conclusion and nods his head a few times.
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