Beat Ukraine and fans will feel the love for Hampden

QUIETLY, without fuss or ceremony, plans to rebuild Hampden have been rolled up and stored at the back of a drawer. Talk of Scotland being part of a joint bid for the 2030 World Cup finals has fallen silent. A feasibility study into the UK and Ireland pooling their resources has run out of road. No one wants to put their name to failure. That’s why no one will come out and say the bid is well and truly done for. UEFA now regard a joint approach by Spain and Portugal as their only hope of luring the finals back to Europe. The trade-off will be the UK and Ireland quietly agreeing to drop the whole shebang and host the Euro finals in 2028 instead. Privately, the SFA accept that all hope of Glasgow staging World Cup games has gone. And with it any chance that Westminster will pick up the tab for Scotland’s national team gracing a home fit for the 21st Century. Where that leaves Hampden’s future is anyone’s guess. A decent athletics arena during the Commonwealth Games, many regard the unloved old lady of Mount Florida as a hopeless and uninspiring place to watch football. A seat behind the goals should come complete with a set of binoculars. Transport links are bang average and, given the choice, plenty would see it torn down and rebuilt. Or sold off for flats. Much of the negativity is overblown. Perceptions have always been unfairly coloured by the performance of the teams that play there. When Scotland were failing miserably to qualify for tournaments, international football was a miserable, godforsaken experience. Days out at Hampden were no fun at all. Yet when Scott McTominay scored a stoppage-time winner in Scotland’s pulsating 3-2 win over Israel last October, no one gave two hoots about the facilities. Bricks and mortar are all very well. But it’s not a doomed bid for the 2030 World Cup the SFA need to rebuild the love for Hampden. Beat Ukraine in the Qatar play-offs in March and the old place will be bouncing.