The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Scotland very strong and comfortable: Armstrong
Robertson wonder goal helps calm nerves in Dark Blues camp
Scotland hero Stuart Armstrong highlighted the grounding he and Andy Robertson got at Dundee United after the pair helped secure the 3-0 win over Lithuania.
Celtic midfielder Armstrong headed the Scots into the lead on 25 minutes – his first for his country – and Liverpool’s Robertson followed that up with a wonder strike five minutes later.
James McArthur finished the scoring in the second half.
They may now be at Parkhead and Anfield respectively but Armstrong’s mind drifted back to his Tannadice days, when he and his left-back mate used to torment the opposition.
Armstrong said: “It is always nice to score your first goal, especially for Scotland. I thought it was a really good performance from start to finish.
“We were very strong, very comfortable and deserved the win. It was really enjoyable too. Playing for your country is something that’s unique and special so it’s always nice to pull on the shirt.
“Andy’s goal was something special. You could see his energy and enthusiasm to get up to the edge of the box and it was a great finish.
“We were both at United together, of course. He came to Tannadice at a time when I had been there a few years and we had a lot of good players.
“We had a great season while he was there and United are a great club, one that I have a lot of time for. It was a great place to play football for both of us.”
Robertson, who joined Jurgen Klopp’s side in the summer in an £8m move after three seasons with Hull, was overjoyed with his second goal for Scotland – but confessed he didn’t remember all the build-up.
He said: “Matty played it to James and he rolled me in and I took a great touch.
“It seemed to take ages to go in – it was in the air forever but when it sailed in I think it gave us a cushion and calmed any nerves.
“Every time I score my missus and my family always make fun of me because I don’t know what to do.
“I can’t control the emotions. If it’s a goal for Hull – or Liverpool soon – or your country they are all special. I just go crazy and when you see the fans behind the goal going crazy you just want to jump in with them.
“I’ll work on my celebrations from now on. It all just goes to your head. You see Scotland fans lobbing beer tumblers in the air in celebrations and waving their tops and it gives you a buzz.
“I used to be a Scotland fan in the crowd at Hampden and when a goal went in I went crazy. All the lads celebrate goals the same way and it’s great to be a part of it. We controlled the game from the start and we didn’t really give them a sniff.
“Scoring my first goal against England was special as was this one. At the end of the day the first one was in a friendly defeat.
“This was a qualifier and we went on to win 3-0 so this one is very special too and one to remember for a long time.”
Strachan hailed Scotland’s win as the most impressive of his four-year reign.
The national team boss has found himself under pressure during a testing World Cup qualifying campaign, but his side responded in fine fashion as they grabbed a much-needed victory in Vilnius to breathe new life into their hopes of reaching Russia.
The Scots dominated the Lithuanians from start to finish.
Strachan told the Sky Sports Football channel: “When I imagined how the
game was going to go earlier this week I couldn’t see it being as good as that in terms of performance.
“I hoped and believed we would get a result, but to play as well as that was terrific. Other teams have come here (and struggled). Slovenia drew 2-2, Slovakia got a 2-1 – they very rarely get beat by a big margin. Even England had a problem trying to put them away.
“The individual performance from some of them were outstanding, so it was a good night.
“We have put up some great performances against Germany and Croatia, but in terms of pure football that was as good as it gets from my time. The guys were phenomenal.”
Strachan started with six Celtic players in his line-up and admits the success of Brendan Rodgers’ men is starting to rub off on the national team.
“It’s (momentum) and the success of Celtic and doing well,” he said after his team climbed level with Group F rivals Slovenia in third place.
“Their players are playing together in top games, understanding what it needs to be a top player, the bravery you need.
“Add that to the other guys that were there tonight, everybody joined in.”
Skipper Scott Brown agreed that the Hoops influence was a major factor in Scotland’s display and hopes it can now act as a springboard as they look to chase down second-placed Slovakia, who remain four points in front.
“The way we played on a hard surface for 90 minutes was fantastic. We tried to pass the ball and play the way I have been playing all season for Celtic,” he said.
“We’re now trying to put that into Scotland as well and we’ve got a great manager that we are flourishing underneath as well.
“It definitely helps having all my club-mates beside me, but we also have Matt Phillips and James coming in and it’s just fantastic to be fair.
“The two centre-halves (Christophe Berra and Charlie Mulgrew) were brilliant, while Robbo’s goal was phenomenal.
“This moves us up to third place. We’re four points behind and we just need to take it one game at a time. We’ve got Malta coming up on Monday and we need to try and get a result there.”
Slovakia, meanwhile, remain two points behind England ahead of their clash at Wembley on Monday night after a late goal from Adam Nemec – his fourth international goal in as many games – secured a 1-0 win over Slovenia in Trnava last night.
Slovenia goalkeeper Jan Oblak made six vital saves in the first half, keeping out two stinging shots apiece from Marek Hamsik and Robert Mak, while he also parried a pair of closerange sitters by Nemec.
The Slovaks will go top of the group if they beat Gareth Southgate’s side on Monday.