Scotland in dreamland as Marshall’s shootout heroics seal place at Euro 2020 finals
D a v i d M a r s h a l l w a s t h e to a s t o f S co t l a n d l a s t n i g h t as he emerged as the penalty shootout hero to clinch a place for Steve Clarke’s men at Euro 2020.
On a night of drama in Belg r a d e , S c o t l a n d h a d g o n e ahead through Ryan Christie’s 52 minute strike and were just moments away from sealing their place at next summer's finals when Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic was allowed to shrug off Scott Mctominay far too easily at a corner to head home a stoppage-time equaliser and send the game to extratime.
With no further scores, the game went to p enalties and Marshall made himself Scotl a n d ' s s p o t- k i c k s av i o u r a s he turned away Aleksandar Mi t r ov i c ' s f i n a l k i c k i n t h e sho otout to end 22 years of pain and send Clarke's men to the Euros after a 5-4 win on penalties.
A n a t i o n
l o o ke d o n a g o g .
Sky Sports had admirably put the game on a free to air channel with fans not permitted to travel or gather in pubs, the way it once was. The broadc a s t e r c o u l d n ow b e u p o n charges of cruelty after Jovic’s last minute header cancelled out Christie’s fine goal six minutes after half-time.
Lyndon Dykes wasn’t even registered to play for Scotland at the start of this year. He grew up on Australia’s Gold Coast. They were preparing to build a statue to him in Moniaive, the town in Dumfries and Galloway where his father grew up, when Serbia struck a sickening late blow, as substitute J o v i c ’s d o w n w a r d h e a d e r in the last minute of regula
tion time forced all those fans watching at home in Scotland to sit down on their seats again.
Dykes h ad b een immense before being replaced by Oli Mc B u r n i e wi t h s e ve n mi n - utes left. S o, too, was Declan G a l l a g h e r, D y k e s ’ f o r m e r team-mate at Livingston. Who would have thought it?
R a r e l y h a s s o muc h h o p e b een invested in a group of S c o t t i s h f o o t b a l l e r s . T h o s e who p l aye d a g a i n s t I t a l y 1 3 ye a r s a g o , t h e l a s t t i me t h e S cots were so close to qualifying, were a talented bunch but had the added difficulty of negotiating a way past the then world champions, Italy. Serbia are good, but they are not that good. Still, Scotland had to do something they aren’t accustomed to achieving. They had to beat a team ranked above them on their own patch.
Clarke’s selection had contained few surprises. It wasn’t the time to make any decisions from left-field. And he did not need to. Reflecting the significance of the game, there were only t wo call- offs. The S cottish bench continued a comf o r t i n g n u m b e r o f q u a l i t y options although Clarke could be accused of changing things when it was not necessary late in the second half.
Kieran Tierney came in at left
centre-half at Andrew Considine’s expense while Gallagher, whose dependabilit y was underlined last month when Scotland posted three successive clean sheets, kept his place at the heart of the three-man defence.
His battle with the burly Fulham striker Aleksander Mitrovic was a fascinating feature of the early stages. The Motherwell defender proved he isn’t one to b e pushed ab out. He
was yellow carded just before half-time after Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz strangel y i n t e r p r e t e d o n e o f t h o s e occasions when he proved resolute, on this occasion when jumping with Sergej Milinkovic-savic, as being an infringement.
Elsewhere, Scotland looked as they have done under Clarke in recent times. Solid. Ever yone seemed to know their job. Everyone seemed well briefed.
Stephen O’donnell is not everyone’s idea of an international wing-back but he pounded the right flank as Scotland spent a surprising amount of time in the hosts’ half.
It meant Serbia were reduced to counter attacks. They worried David Marshall only once when a Sasa Lukic shot whistled past his far post from 20 yards after a lay-off from Alexsander Mitrovic.
As for Scotland, Dykes was causing the S erbian defence untold problems. He won the majority of the high balls that came his way, including in the lead-up to a chance for John Mcginn, whose shot was not p owerful enough to unduly trouble Predrag Rajkovic.
The feeling was that Serbia could only improve in the second half. They did, eventually. But they seemed even more all at sea when they re-emerged. In that time Scotland secured a precious, era-defining goal. The visitors had even passed up a glorious chance just a few moments before when Dykes capitalised on a slip by Ste - fan Mitrovic to set-up Robertson, whose composure then deserted him as he blazed high over.
Scotland struck shortly afterwards after 52 minutes. Filip Kostic’s slack pass into midfield was intercepted by the ever-industrious Mcgregor, who fed Christie on the edge of the box. He turned one way and then another before unleashing a left-foot that sped across the wet turf and smacked the post. The ball might have been expected to bounce back out. It didn’t. It kissed the post before nestling in the back of the net.
It was the potentially price - less goal their efforts deserved. Clarke showed barely a flicker of emotion on the bench.
Mcgregor might have added another shortly afterwards. His long-range effort bent just wide. Christie himself might have struck again. His angled shot also flew narrowly past.
There was a scare at the other end when Milinkovic heade d i n t o t h e s i d e - n e t t i n g . I t signalled the sting in the tail that duly came but not before Jovic tempted Scots watching at home to think other wise, when he planted a header narrowly past. Would it be different on this night of all nights? The same player got his head to a corner on one of the only occasions the Scottish defence had come up short all evening.
Mctominay briefly lost his man at a corner and Jovic’s downward header bounced up off the turf and evaded Marshall’s despairing reach.