Scotland improve after break but draw blank in Pocognoli’s first match

Sebastien Pocognoli began his Scotland tenure with a 0-0 draw in Slovenia, leaving a stronger second-half display unrewarded. Scotland had no shot on target before the break and took 38 minutes to touch the ball in Slovenia’s penalty area, BBC Scotland chief sports writer Tom English reported. [1]

Writing for BBC Sport on 27 September, English judged Scotland much more threatening after half-time. He linked the improvement to Oli McBurnie moving deeper and Billy Gilmour sitting lower in midfield. McBurnie failed to convert a one-on-one with Jan Oblak, Robbie Ure hit a post and Kieron Bowie missed another chance. [1]

BBC Sport reported that Scotland’s 17 shots were their most in a competitive match for more than 14 years, with all 10 starting outfield players having an attempt. But Scotland have now gone three consecutive tournament games without scoring for the first time in almost 22 years. [1]