Scotland Men's Football Team

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Scotland midfielder Stuart Armstong's "pedigree" and "quality" are now shining through after struggling early on at Vancouver Whitecaps.

That's the verdict of Canadian football podcaster Alexander Gangue-Ruzic, who says Armstrong was still in "pre-season mode" when he signed but is now showing his talent.

The former Dundee United and Celtic playmaker joined the MLS side at the start of September after leaving Southampton as a free agent.

The 32-year-old is playing alongside Vancouver fan favourite and fellow Scotland cap, Ryan Gauld, who scored a hat-trick in the wildcard round 5-0 win over Portland Timbers to guarantee a spot in the play-offs.

In their opening play-off game on Monday evening, the Whitecaps lost 2-1 against Los Angeles FC.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, Gangue-Ruzic said: "It's unique for Armstrong because he signs in September and here that's the run-in.

"It's booking play-off qualification, one of his first games was playing in a cup final because the Whitecaps had reached the final of the Canadian Championship, and it was clear he wasn't up to speed.

"And that's not his fault. He signs here, he's in pre-season mode.

"I know he'd been training with Brentford, I think he'd mentioned just trying to keep up to speed and he's dropped right into [a squad with] guys who've been playing since February together for months. And it took a while.

"He was struggling, he didn't look fit, he had some injuries.

"But I will say he's really come along lately, his last two games have been fantastic.

"You're starting to see the quality that you were expecting when he was signed, the pedigree that he has.

"And I think that's exciting because there's no doubt he fits perfectly into this team when healthy, when fit, and it took a while for those things to come together."

Scotland left-back Josh Doig is happy learning under former Italy defender Fabio Grosso at Sassuolo and says the country now feels like home. (Sunday Times, print edition)

Scotland midfielders Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour - along with the rest of Napoli's new signings - have been ordered to become fluent in Italian as soon as possible. (Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli via Football Transfers), external

Billy Gilmour had an 88% pass success rate while fellow Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay's header laid on the winner for Gio Di Lorenzo in Napoli's 1-0 win over Lecce on Saturday. (Scottish Sun On Sunday), external

Scotland forward Jacob Brown says it was heartbreaking to suffer an injury that prevented him from trying to help Luton Town avoid relegation and missing Euro 2024 and that he still has a long way to go to recover full fitness. (Sunday Mail, print edition)

Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Scotland midfielder Ryan Gauld scored a hat-trick in Vancouver Whitecaps' 5-0 win over Portland Timbers. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription), external

Read Friday's Scottish gossip

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Billy Gilmour will have to make a "huge impact" to become a Napoli regular after enduring "quite a difficult" first Serie A start.

That's according to Italian football writer Alasdair MacKenzie, who said Antonio Conte's side "had a tough time" in their narrow win over Empoli on Sunday.

The game was decided by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia's second-half penalty, meaning Napoli are top of the table after eight games, but Scotland's Gilmour "struggled to dictate the tempo" in the narrow win.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, MacKenzie said: "It wasn't really Gilmour's fault, but Napoli were away to an Empoli side that have been one of the surprises of the season so far.

"They hadn't conceded a single goal at home all season long and the only goal they did concede in this game was from a penalty.

"So I think Napoli were caught a little bit by surprise, particularly in the first half. Gilmour was struggling to dictate the tempo and run the game in the way he likes to.

"Conte was still pretty positive about him after the game, even though it wasn't a match where he was a standout player.

"But Gilmour is going to have to seize these chances because he is second choice in his position to Stanislav Lobotka, the Slovakian playmaker who's had a really, really good start to the season."

We asked for your views on Scotland's 0-0 draw against Portugal.

Here's what some of you said:

Ricky: They all deserved man of the match, let's take this positive performance into the last two games and get some more points on the board. Well played.

Jim: Another fine fighting display. Arguably Scotland had the better chances to score. Steve Clarke has them all singing from the same hymn sheet and considering how many talented players are out injured, plus young blood coming through, it all looks promising for the future.

Grant: Dogged, smart display against a superior team, but we were tired and ragged at the end. Billy Gilmour invisible second half but others dug deep, but we are miles off it at that level.

Euan: I'm pretty pleased with this international window. The key thing for this Nations League campaign was to develop an alternative style of play against top opposition. We were too reliant on a back three and dented when we don't have the Kieran Tierney and Andy Robertson overlap. Each game we have played with the four has represented progression in my eyes and that's what we want. Clarke and the team have a plan and it's working. We will be far more adaptable in the future as a result. Context is key and we will be stronger for it come World Cup qualification, I'm confident.

Grant: Dreadful as usual, best player was Craig Gordon. We kept giving the ball away, we would start from the back then give it away and couldn't string two passes together.

Ali: Well done Scotland, true gritty performance. The national team is playing on a very high plain of standards now with only about eight players from the Euros qualifying games fit and in the squad, but the new boys showed Scotland's growing squad depth. Well done boys and well done Clarke. You're beginning to show we deserve to be at the top table.

George: Portugal are a class outfit so to get a draw is a good result, especially with our absences from the squad. Unlucky in last two games too, losing both by single goal. Keep up the good work Clarke and the squad.

David Currie
BBC Sport Scotland at Hampden

Scotland goalkeeper Craig Gordon praised the "real team effort" required to secure a 0-0 draw at home to Portugal in the Nations League.

The Scots secured their first point in League A Group 1 with the draw at Hampden, following three opening losses.

"It felt good, everybody was chucking their body in front of things at different stages in the game," said Hearts keeper Gordon, 41.

"A real team effort to get through that and preserve the clean sheet and very happy to be part of it.

"The effort’s been there, the boys are trying to give everything to get that win. It’s going to be so difficult when you are playing the opposition of the calibre we are.

"We are happy with the point, we created a few chances of our own, we could have nicked the game. We managed to get one point. It’s going to take all of that and more to try and get a win."

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Nicky Devlin's Scotland debut may have been brief but it was eventful, with the defender making a vital contribution in a hard fought 0-0 draw with Portugal at Hampden.

The Aberdeen right-back replaced Anthony Ralston after 89 minutes at Hampden and soon after his introduction made a great block to keep out a shot from Rafael Leao.

"It is probably a dream come true," said the 30-year-old.

"I understand, probably for millions of people, that’s their dream, and I managed to get on tonight and make mine come true.

"So a proud moment for me and all my family. I was a bit apprehensive in terms of, you don't want to come on and concede a goal late.

"You have to focus on doing your job, do the job the way you’ve been doing it. That’s what got you to this point."

On his crucial intervention to deny the AC Milan winger, Devlin said: "I wasn't sure if I was tucked in too much and maybe that's why he had a wee bit of space.

"But you've got to just fling your body at it.

"For the last two games, the defence, the whole team, have made a lot of blocks, Craig Gordon has made a few big saves.

"So you kind of just want to do your part and hopefully I managed to do that."

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Portugal head coach Roberto Martinez compliments Scotland's togetherness following the 0-0 draw between the sides in the Nations League.

Scotland delivered a resolute defensive display to hold Portugal to a goalless draw and secure the first point of their Nations League A campaign.

The Scots passed up a glorious chance in the opening minutes through Scott McTominay and were then starved of possession as the visitors searched for an opener.

Cristiano Ronaldo was frustrated in his attempts to register a 134th goal in Portugal colours on his 200th international start as home goalkeeper Craig Gordon and his defence held firm.

The draw means Steve Clarke's side have now won just one of their past 16 matches, but they avoided the unwanted history of becoming the first Scotland team to lose five straight matches.

What did you make of that performance? - let us know your thoughts here, external.

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Scotland head coach Steve Clarke: "The point was important for us after the work the group put in to get off the mark.

"Defensively sound. The shape of the team was good. We denied a lot of space in behind. Good concentration in the box, determined defending at times, some really good blocks, which you need against sides like Portugal. Everyone contributed to earn the point.

"Everyone keeps talking about confidence, but they know they can play well. We maybe didn't play as well as we could on the ball, which could be down to fatigue. But I don't think they lack confidence. Tonight's point will give us more confidence.

"Fantastic. First cap for Nicky. A moment to remember. He got us a point with that block. I had no doubt putting Nicky into the game. He's trained well and fitted right into the group. I knew when Tony Ralston was ready to come off that Nicky would be fine - and he was.

"Ben Doak was good for such a young man. To be asked to go again. It was a decision I weighed up in my mind, to maybe keep him for 30 minutes at the end. He did so well on Saturday that I thought it was better to start him.

"The players dug in and ground out a really good point for us. The fans can be nervous when the opposition have so much possession. But when they did create a big chance, Craig Gordon was there to save it. It's the first time in a long time I have celebrated a save."

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter at Hampden

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Despite losing all three previous games in the group – single-goal defeats at home to Poland and away to Portugal and Croatia – there was enough in those performances to offer hope that the Scots could at least compete with the Portuguese superstars on their own patch.

It wasn’t always pretty, but for 90 minutes, competitive is exactly what they were. They created a couple of early openings – the Scott McTominay chance the most glaring of them – and coped admirably with the speed and movement of the Portuguese front-line.

As the game wore on they saw less and less of the ball, though, the back-line dropped deeper and deeper, and Che Adams up front, selected ahead of Lyndon Dykes, was left battling for scraps or challenging for balls in the air against the comparatively imposing figures of Ruben Dias, Antonio Silva and Joao Cancelo.

As a defensive unit the Scots were organised and resolute and limited their illustrious opponents to very few clear-cut chances. The problem once again was their inability to offer a significant attacking threat.

Ben Doak had few opportunities to make an impression on the game on his second international start, and McTominay looked yet again the most likely to provide a goal. With that early headed chance, he should have.

Steve Clarke and his team simply had to stop the bleeding of recent defeats and this point, against one of Europe’s top sides, gives them something tangible for their considerable efforts in this first block of games.

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Billy Gilmour put in potentially his most complete performance in a Scotland jersey.

The mature midfielder was safe in possession, composed under extreme pressure and consistently won battles in key areas of the pitch throughout the full 90.

Image source, SNS

Scotland: Gordon, Ralston, Hanley, Souttar, Robertson, Gilmour, McLean, Doak, McTominay, Christie, Adams.

Substitutes: McCracken, McCrorie, Barron, Dykes, MacKenzie, Irving, Porteous, Lindsay, Morgan, Nisbet, Gauld, Devlin.

Portugal: Costa, Cancelo, Dias, A Silva, Mendes, Fernandes, Palhinha, Vitinha, Jota, Ronaldo, Conceicao.

Substitutes: Velho, R Silva, Semedo, Dalot, Trincao, B Silva, Felix, Veiga, J Neves, Otavio, Leao, R Neves.

Kheredine Idessane
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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"Be ugly, even if Portugal are beautiful".

That's easy for the former silky Scotland winger, Pat Nevin to say.

But, that is the message from Nevin as Scotland prepare to welcome Cristiano Ronaldo and co to Hampden this evening.

Nevin, who won 28 Scotland caps and scored five international goals, feels it would be "something special" if Steve Clarke were able to end a wretched run against a star-studded Portugal side in their Nations League A fixture.

"There's an understanding and acceptance among Scottish football fans that when you see real quality, as long as they're not diving about and throwing themselves to the ground, it's accepted, it's applauded and it's admired," Nevin told BBC Scotland.

"There are a hell of a lot of players to admire in this Portugal team, particularly from middle to front. Scotland fans, go along, get behind the team and you just never know, be ugly to play against even if they're being beautiful."

Despite the national side failing to win a competitive match in over a year, Nevin reckons the players still have a belief that they're making progress as they try to build towards next year's World Cup qualifying campaign.

"I don't think the players are a problem, I honestly don't, I don't think Clarke's a problem," Nevin said.

"I think keeping the fans on board is hard, but they've been generally pretty good. You can see that the vast majority of fans kind of get it. Some fans don't want it and are saying "get somebody else in," but the vast majority of the Tartan Army seem to understand that if you've qualified for two out of the last three major tournaments, the stock's there; it's fine.

"Clarke's been given a little bit of time. The problem he's got is if this keeps on going. If one or two hidings start appearing again, as we saw against Germany and in the friendly against France.

"You don't want that to keep on happening, something has to slightly change. It would be nice if it changed against Portugal."

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Sitting back and soaking up, that was the script against Portugal in Lisbon.

You get the sense it may be the same at Hampden tonight.

But like many of the Tartan Army, The Athletic's Jordan Campbell is urging Scotland to be a bit "braver on the ball" against Roberto Martinez' star-studded side.

It's something he thought Steve Clarke's were better at in their narrow defeat to Croatia on Saturday, and a sign of the "improvement" the team have made in their Nations League campaign.

"Scotland have got to be realistic, we're not going to dominate the ball against Portugal," said Campbell on the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast.

"Even people, like me, who are calling for Scotland to be a bit braver on the ball, we'd like to see us actually try and play through Portugal at times, but there's got to be variety.

"I guess if it's Lyndon Dykes or Che Adams up front, they are going to have to hold the ball up and they may have to play it into their feet for 40 or 50 yards. That was something that I actually thought Scotland improved against Croatia.

"I thought actually on the ball there looked to have been work on actually trying to play a controlled pass into the striker rather than just launching it and having absolutely nobody around Dykes.

"There did look to be a little bit of improvement there.

"Whether I'm searching for things too much could be argued, but there's definitely two or three things that looked like they were trying to be a bit more progressive and a bit less direct."

Listen and subscribe to the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast here on BBC Sounds

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Che Adams says Scotland respect the "amazing stars" they will face when they take on Portugal at Hampden in the Nations League on Tuesday, but believes Steve Clarke’s men have the ability to "hurt" their illustrious opponents.

The Scots gave a credible performance when the sides met in Lisbon last month and looked on course to claim a point until Cristiano Ronaldo struck late in the game to secure a 2-1 win for the hosts.

After a similar story in Zagreb against Croatia where they also lost 2-1 on Saturday, Adams says want to go "toe-to-toe" with another of the world’s top sides at Hampden.

"We know how good of a nation they are and how many amazing stars they've got, but it's down to us and what we do on the pitch," said the Torino striker.

"We've definitely got the team to hurt them and shake them about. That's what we proved against Croatia, against the top nation as well.

"Tuesday is going to be no different."

Scotland were criticised for what many perceived to be an overly-cautious approach at the Euros where they managed just one goal in three games as they failed to progress beyond the group stage.

Adams believes the team has demonstrated a desire to offer more as an attacking threat in recent games.

"I've definitely seen the changes in the mentality in the attacking play against Croatia," he said.

"We played in a back four and we were definitely on the front foot and getting after them.

"I think it just helps having more bodies on the pitch to put them under pressure and create chances.

"I think we created a few against Croatia the other day and I think it just puts a positive spin on things if you have more people on the pitch to help in attack and get the ball back."

"Everyone in the nation wants us to play against the best and go toe-to-toe with them.

"Tomorrow is going to be no exception. Everyone's going to be up for it. The crowd are going to be up for it.

"As long as we start fast and we start quick, we'll be in for a good night."