Four wins in a row or bust as Scots seek to make history

Scotland will almost certainly need to win four World Cup qualifiers in a row for the first time ever if they are to reach Russia next summer.

Losing the lead to England in the final moments on Saturday is set to have greater impact than simply breaking a nation’s hearts. The loss of two points courtesy of Harry Kane’s equaliser in time added on could prove the death knell to Scotland’s World Cup ambitions since it means Gordon Strachan’s side will most probably require maximum points from their four remaining Group F fixtures.

If Scotland do succeed in this lofty challenge it will be an unprecedented achievement. Three wins in a row are the most ever managed by Scotland in a World Cup qualifying campaign, a sequence of results they have manfirst aged to put together four times – in the 1974, ’78, ’90 and ’98 campaigns.

Scotland won four in a row, including against France, in the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign under Alex Mcleish, and five in succession during the Euro ’96 campaign when Craig Brown was manager. The latter sequence featured three games against San Marino and the Faroe Isles but also included hard-earned victories over Greece and Finland.

In order to secure second place this time around Scotland will likely be required to win four successive qualifying games starting away to Lithuania, where Scotland have won just once in their last four visits, in September.

A home fixture against Malta four days later completes the

0 Ikechi Anya, challenged by England’s Chris Smalling, believes Scotland ‘have plenty to build on’ for their remaining matches. of two double-headers, then Scotland finish off with tricky games against Slovakia at Hampden and away to Slovenia in October.

With eight play-off places on offer, and England on course to finish top of Group F, Scotland must target second place and hope there is at least one runner-up elsewhere with a worse record.

One of the nine runners-up will face the frustration of losing out on a play-off place. As it stands, Scotland’s group is currently sitting sixth out of nine in the runners-up listings, with only results against the top five teams counting.

Craig Brown, who led Scotland to those five qualifying wins on the trot in 1995, believes Strachan’s side can obtain maximum points from their remaining Group F fixtures. Together with Jim Farry, then chief executive of the SFA, Brown ensured Scotland finished with three home fixtures en route to qualifying for Euro ’96 in England.

“The fixtures used to be determined by an often fraught meeting of the countries involved. Now it’s all done by computer,” said Brown when contacted by The Scotsman yesterday.

“Happily for Scotland, it’s thrown up a schedule I’d have taken, where there is the potential to finish strongly. That’s England out the way but Slovenia and Slovakia, the countries we are competing with, still have to play them. You would expect England to win these games, which closes the gap for us.

“The four games we have left are winnable,” he added. “There’s a feelgood factor now, after the last two matches, which the players will feed off.

“I have just been writing to a German coaching friend of mine, and I’m saying we can winfourgames.we’recertainly on the up and up. I know it’s an overused word, but we have got momentum. We’re not hanging on to a two-point or three-point lead – in sport, the worse thing possible is a losing lead. If we slip up in any of the games left then it will be a major disappointment.”

Like Brown, Ikechi Anya, who played right wing-back on Saturday, is upbeat about the chances of qualifying after recovering from the dismay at losing the lead so quickly against England. While history suggests otherwise, he sees “no reason” why Scotland can’t win every game they have left.

“There are positives to take from it,” he said of the England game. “We started the game well and forced England

0 Former manager Craig Brown won five Euro qualifiers in a row. back, and then towards the end we had them really rattled. I felt we created some decent chances against them and limited them to only a few. So, when we meet up again and we sit down and watch it back, we will probably feel we did okay in the game.

“There is definitely plenty to build on for the matches against Lithuania and Malta next time round. We’ll be confident of getting two wins when the lads meet up again. I don’t know if we have to win every game but we certainly need to take points in every one.

“But we will be going out to get full points in every match, and I don’t see any reason why we can’t do it. It’s all about getting a bit of momentum going. We face Lithuania next and that match is winnable so hopefully we can get three points there then build upon it.”

Anya was one of those required to ensure they maintained fitness before the England game, having finished his league season with Derby County in April. “I had a sixweek break between my last game and then the England match so I am looking forward to just relaxing with family and friends until pre-season comes around again,” he said.

“It’s time to recharge the batteries and come back ready to go in July.” Walesmidfielderjoeledley could be tempted by a move abroad as he weighs up his career options.

Ledley made nearly 100 appearances for Crystal Palace after joining from Celtic in January 2014, but was frozen out by manager Sam Allardyce during the second half of last season and released by the Premier League club last week.

“It’s been frustrating,” Ledley said after helping Wales to a 1-1 World Cup qualifying draw in Serbia on Sunday night.

“I don’t know why I’ve not been even in the squads, but it was the decision of the manager and I had to deal with it and get on with it. Things move on, I’ve left and hopefully I can get a new team now.

“It’s definitely for the best. I spent three and a half years at the club and gave my all there and I think the fans know that. But when you’re not getting picked for as long as I wasn’t, you have to do something about it. I need to be playing, especially having turned 30 now. I want to continue playing as long as I can.”

Ledley says clubs have already shown an interest, including many from overseas. He said: “There’s been clubs in touch with my agent all over the world. I’d be prepared to go abroad, I think it would appeal to me, especially having played international football, because I love playing on that stage and I think it suits the way I play.

“There’s been Championship and Premier League clubs in touch, a lot of interest, but I want to have a good summer with the family first.”

Ledley’s last game for Palace was at the start of February. Since then he has played only twice as Wales drew in the Republic of Ireland and Serbia to keep their World Cup hopes alive.

Yet he still managed to last the full game in the sapping Belgrade heat on Sunday. “I wasn’t surprised I played 90 minutes, I’ve got it in me to do that,” Ledley said. I felt good out there, especially with Joe [Allen] alongside me. He helped me through it.”