Scotland player ratings and the future

[TheBigO]

McGregor 9 - Can't be blamed for goals and again had a few good saves and handling is solid

 

Bardsley 8 - Thought he had a great debut, composed on the ball and stood up pretty well to their attack

Weir 8 - Could be his final game for us, considering our next qualifier is 11 months away. Nothing much got by him

McManus 5 - Might seem harsh, but ultimately his error cost us and it's time he was dropped (he wasn't close enough for their 2nd either)

Whittaker 6 - I thought unlucky with the pen - was a pen, but natural body shape. 2 yellows were harsh i thought - hard tackles was all, Ramos rolling around didn't help. Looked a bit slow otherwise.

 

McCulloch 5 - Why? He was letting players run off him time and time again (don't know if he was told to hold his position and allow runners to go, but that would seem crazy) and contributed nothing on the ball as usual

Fletch 7 - Always tried to play football, was always nipping at their heels. Captain's performance

 

Dorrans 7 - Worked his erchie off and wasn't afraid to have a go at them on the ball - more to come from him

Morrison 8 - Our best player over the two games for me. Looks undroppable. Hard work, composure and skill. If the shot from the half way had come off, I'd have spunked - missed by a mile, but i like his thinking!

Naismith 9 MOTM - Superb, he's on top form at the moment and showed it last night. God work ethic (something I'm writing a lot here!) and again, he kept going at them and just would accept a defeat

 

Miller 7 - Manful. His touch does let him down, but we just don't have anyone else who works a backline like Kenny does and he does it more intelligently than he gets credit for - brilliant cross for 1st goal too.

 

Adam 5 - I like Adam, but this wasn't his best, caught on the ball too often, but only cos he was trying to put his foot on it which is testiment to him. Set-pieces weren't good enough and he loses a mark for that.

Mackie 6 - Looks a find, i think. Direct and quick and caused them problems

Maloney 5 - No real time, but tried to be creative and inject some urgency into an understandably knackered team

 

Levein 9 - After the stick he's taken, I have to say he got this spot on. Last night is what we want and expect of our players, not the dilluted passion of last Friday

 

Overall, I'm walking with my chest puffed out again and I'm happy as Larry with last night. Watched it in a pub full of people shouting for Spain and who, after watching us on Friday expected us to fear them. We simply didn't and we played the way which suits us best - up in the oppo's faces.

 

Have to say though, my pride from last night is tinged with even more anger about Friday as it shows what i've been saying since then: playing fearlessly against quality opposition and coming up short is fine, infact it's commendable; playing with nothing in mind but to spoil against any opposition and coming up short is unacceptable.

 

If Levein has privately learnt his lesson, that's fine. But if he truely stands by Friday, we're in trouble. He's the kind of "strong" character who'll never admit fault though, even though that would help him with the media and, more importantly, the fans in the long run.

 

What needs done teamwise: We need a new centre half pairing by next October. McManus has let us down time and again and simply can't be first choice as our left sided CH - Berra has to take this mantle. Weir will be 93 by next Oct, so we need someone to come in there too... Webster? Wilson? Reynolds, as a long shot?

 

We need to develop last night's formation. A 4231 suits our players brilliantly. Need to work out who plays in that deep 2 along with Fletch as McCulloch is too immobile, Hartley will be getting on and Robson looks like a boy lesbian.

 

The rest of the team looks good: Gordon, Hutton, CH, CH, Wallace, Fletcher, CM, Dorrans, Morrison, Naismith, Miller.

 

I'm happy with that and in the knowledge we have Faddy, Maloney, Driver, S Fletcher to add to that plus the likes of Bardsley and Mackie who didn't look out of place. In a year's time, the likes of Bannan and Forrest might be pushing too.

[TheBigO]

McGregor 9 - Can't be blamed for goals and again had a few good saves and handling is solid

 

Bardsley 8 - Thought he had a great debut, composed on the ball and stood up pretty well to their attack

Weir 8 - Could be his final game for us, considering our next qualifier is 11 months away. Nothing much got by him

McManus 5 - Might seem harsh, but ultimately his error cost us and it's time he was dropped (he wasn't close enough for their 2nd either)

Whittaker 6 - I thought unlucky with the pen - was a pen, but natural body shape. 2 yellows were harsh i thought - hard tackles was all, Ramos rolling around didn't help. Looked a bit slow otherwise.

 

McCulloch 5 - Why? He was letting players run off him time and time again (don't know if he was told to hold his position and allow runners to go, but that would seem crazy) and contributed nothing on the ball as usual

Fletch 7 - Always tried to play football, was always nipping at their heels. Captain's performance

 

Dorrans 7 - Worked his erchie off and wasn't afraid to have a go at them on the ball - more to come from him

Morrison 8 - Our best player over the two games for me. Looks undroppable. Hard work, composure and skill. If the shot from the half way had come off, I'd have spunked - missed by a mile, but i like his thinking!

Naismith 9 MOTM - Superb, he's on top form at the moment and showed it last night. God work ethic (something I'm writing a lot here!) and again, he kept going at them and just would accept a defeat

 

Miller 7 - Manful. His touch does let him down, but we just don't have anyone else who works a backline like Kenny does and he does it more intelligently than he gets credit for - brilliant cross for 1st goal too.

 

Adam 5 - I like Adam, but this wasn't his best, caught on the ball too often, but only cos he was trying to put his foot on it which is testiment to him. Set-pieces weren't good enough and he loses a mark for that.

Mackie 6 - Looks a find, i think. Direct and quick and caused them problems

Maloney 5 - No real time, but tried to be creative and inject some urgency into an understandably knackered team

 

Levein 9 - After the stick he's taken, I have to say he got this spot on. Last night is what we want and expect of our players, not the dilluted passion of last Friday

 

Overall, I'm walking with my chest puffed out again and I'm happy as Larry with last night. Watched it in a pub full of people shouting for Spain and who, after watching us on Friday expected us to fear them. We simply didn't and we played the way which suits us best - up in the oppo's faces.

 

Have to say though, my pride from last night is tinged with even more anger about Friday as it shows what i've been saying since then: playing fearlessly against quality opposition and coming up short is fine, infact it's commendable; playing with nothing in mind but to spoil against any opposition and coming up short is unacceptable.

 

If Levein has privately learnt his lesson, that's fine. But if he truely stands by Friday, we're in trouble. He's the kind of "strong" character who'll never admit fault though, even though that would help him with the media and, more importantly, the fans in the long run.

 

What needs done teamwise: We need a new centre half pairing by next October. McManus has let us down time and again and simply can't be first choice as our left sided CH - Berra has to take this mantle. Weir will be 93 by next Oct, so we need someone to come in there too... Webster? Wilson? Reynolds, as a long shot?

 

We need to develop last night's formation. A 4231 suits our players brilliantly. Need to work out who plays in that deep 2 along with Fletch as McCulloch is too immobile, Hartley will be getting on and Robson looks like a boy lesbian.

 

The rest of the team looks good: Gordon, Hutton, CH, CH, Wallace, Fletcher, CM, Dorrans, Morrison, Naismith, Miller.

 

I'm happy with that and in the knowledge we have Faddy, Maloney, Driver, S Fletcher to add to that plus the likes of Bardsley and Mackie who didn't look out of place. In a year's time, the likes of Bannan and Forrest might be pushing too.

 

Sorry to reply to own post - just watched highlights and I retract what i said about Whittaker's sending off! Don't know why I thought it was two tackles and not a yellow for the penalty. Ref maybe got it right and for that, he's down to a 5!

[heartsfc_fan]

Whittaker didn't have to make that tackle at the end there. Stupid really.

 

McCulloch should be dropped and Adam coming in. McManus should also be dropped and Berra in (who remember is playing at a higher level anyway), then we haven't got a bad team there.

[Ray Winstone]

The future of the team:

 

Gordon

 

Hutton

Wallce

Wilson

Berra (unless someone better comes along)

 

Morrison

Fletcher

Dorrans

Adam

 

Naismith

Boyd/Miller

 

I can't see Scott Brown bringing anything to the team and I don't think there is any point in keeping Weir and McCulloch anywhere near the squad.

 

Berra has not been at his best for Scotland but he is no worse than Caldwell or McManus.

[rossthejambo]

McGregor - 8 - Made some good saves but think after getting to the penalty should have had a stronger hand to keep it out.

 

Bardsley - 8 - Played better in that one game than Hutton has played for Scotland in months. Great attitude and hope he can keep that standard up against the smaller nations.

Weir - 7 - Made some good tackles and despite being a pensioner didn't look all that bad.

McManus - 5 - Would have been a 6 had he not sold the jerseys for their goal. Also misjudged the flight of two crosses in their box which could have resulted in chances for us.

Whittaker - 4 - Weak link IMO. Never looked comfortable on the ball and let Ramos and Silva past too easy too often. Deserved to be sent off, was lucky not to be sent off on Friday as well IMO. Wallace shouldn't be too worried about his position being taken from him.

 

Dorrans - 6 - Another good game, good range of passes but got caught in possession a bit too much for my liking. Can only improve though and is the shining light of the Scotland team for the future.

McCulloch - 4 - Waste of a jersey, not much more to say on the matter.

Morrison - 7 - Good play for the goal but apart from that thought he was a bit anonymous.

Fletcher - 7 - Like above, played some wonderful passes but sandwiched in amongst some shocking ones. Was good at closing the play down though, got to wonder why he can't play like this every game for Scotland.

Naismith - 8 - For a small player up against Pique and Puyol and Busquets he won alot of headers and always worked his socks off. Can't stand him tbh but was a good performance.

 

Miller - 6 - Ran his heart out but was caught offside too often and should have done better when it was 2 on 2 in the first half. Still think Steven Fletcher is a better option.

 

Subs

Adam - 6 - Started well and had some great passes but caught in possession too often.

Mackie - 5 - Another good performance from him, think he could be a great find.

Maloney - Strange substitution but didn't get enough time to do anything so won't give him a mark.

 

Overall, massive improvement on Friday, begs the question why we never played this team on Friday. I'm sure Levein will have his reasons but as far as I'm concerned, if you can play that well against the World and European Champions, you can play that well against anyone.

[TheBigO]

McGregor - 8 - Made some good saves but think after getting to the penalty should have had a stronger hand to keep it out.

 

Bardsley - 8 - Played better in that one game than Hutton has played for Scotland in months. Great attitude and hope he can keep that standard up against the smaller nations.

Weir - 7 - Made some good tackles and despite being a pensioner didn't look all that bad.

McManus - 5 - Would have been a 6 had he not sold the jerseys for their goal. Also misjudged the flight of two crosses in their box which could have resulted in chances for us.

Whittaker - 4 - Weak link IMO. Never looked comfortable on the ball and let Ramos and Silva past too easy too often. Deserved to be sent off, was lucky not to be sent off on Friday as well IMO. Wallace shouldn't be too worried about his position being taken from him.

 

Dorrans - 6 - Another good game, good range of passes but got caught in possession a bit too much for my liking. Can only improve though and is the shining light of the Scotland team for the future.

McCulloch - 4 - Waste of a jersey, not much more to say on the matter.

Morrison - 7 - Good play for the goal but apart from that thought he was a bit anonymous.

Fletcher - 7 - Like above, played some wonderful passes but sandwiched in amongst some shocking ones. Was good at closing the play down though, got to wonder why he can't play like this every game for Scotland.

Naismith - 8 - For a small player up against Pique and Puyol and Busquets he won alot of headers and always worked his socks off. Can't stand him tbh but was a good performance.

 

Miller - 6 - Ran his heart out but was caught offside too often and should have done better when it was 2 on 2 in the first half. Still think Steven Fletcher is a better option.

 

Subs

Adam - 6 - Started well and had some great passes but caught in possession too often.

Mackie - 5 - Another good performance from him, think he could be a great find.

Maloney - Strange substitution but didn't get enough time to do anything so won't give him a mark.

 

Overall, massive improvement on Friday, begs the question why we never played this team on Friday. I'm sure Levein will have his reasons but as far as I'm concerned, if you can play that well against the World and European Champions, you can play that well against anyone.

 

Interesting what you say about the midfielders misplacing so many passes. In my shiny little world, I see that as them trying to play football against a team who actually close down the ball very well - don't massively blame the lads for missing a few - better than what we've seen before when players don't want the ball.

 

Great point re Naismith, Ross. Won so many headers, didn't he. Very good wee player Naismith - always has been - just a shame he behaves like such a tool on the park.

 

I wonder if Maloney coming on was incase we got a freekick either direct or to be whipped in? I thought big Chris might have been a shout just to long for the last 5.

[rossthejambo]

Interesting what you say about the midfielders misplacing so many passes. In my shiny little world, I see that as them trying to play football against a team who actually close down the ball very well - don't massively blame the lads for missing a few - better than what we've seen before when players don't want the ball.

 

Great point re Naismith, Ross. Won so many headers, didn't he. Very good wee player Naismith - always has been - just a shame he behaves like such a tool on the park.

 

I wonder if Maloney coming on was incase we got a freekick either direct or to be whipped in? I thought big Chris might have been a shout just to long for the last 5.

 

See what you're getting at about trying to play football, and I'm on board with that idea, however against Spain you need to keep the ball as much as you possibly can. Misplacing simple passes on the halfway line isn't the way to do it. The one thing I noticed was when they did try to go long they almost always found their man which made me wonder why they didn't try it more often.

 

Obviously Spain's closing down was different class and made it difficult. I could be being a little over-critical.

 

I thought the obvious change would be Fletcher for Miller, bit of pace, height and strength, different type of player from Miller, for the last few minutes would maybe test Pique and Puyol a bit more and Miller was clearly tiring. Again could be being over-critical.

 

Feel a lot more positive after this defeat than Friday's.

[CBjambo]

McCulloch is awful, he should never play for Scotland again.

Berra should have played instead of McManus.

Miller should learn how to pass (granted cross for goal was great, but simple passing is terrible).

 

Apart from that it was a great display and showed a lot of promise... with players to come back into the squad also... losing 3-2 to the world champions is an admirable defeat. The new guys did very well indeed.

 

Oh and McGregor was outstanding... Craigy will need to up his game considerably.

 

Well done lads.

[TheBigO]

See what you're getting at about trying to play football, and I'm on board with that idea, however against Spain you need to keep the ball as much as you possibly can. Misplacing simple passes on the halfway line isn't the way to do it. The one thing I noticed was when they did try to go long they almost always found their man which made me wonder why they didn't try it more often.

 

Obviously Spain's closing down was different class and made it difficult. I could be being a little over-critical.

 

I thought the obvious change would be Fletcher for Miller, bit of pace, height and strength, different type of player from Miller, for the last few minutes would maybe test Pique and Puyol a bit more and Miller was clearly tiring. Again could be being over-critical.

 

Feel a lot more positive after this defeat than Friday's.

 

Yup, we played the long ball really well last night. It was never an aimless punt up the park (which was the only option on Friday), it always seemed to, at the very least, give kenny something to chase and in most cases actually found him or released him.

[NoseLikeMahe]

Was in the South Stand at Hampden, so hadn't seen how bad the error for the last goal was until this morning

 

McGregor: 8 A few great saves. If you want to be hyper-critical he was in position to keep the penalty out, got a hand to it but not enough...

 

Bardsley: 8 Once we were 2-0 down and having a go at them I was wishing Hutton was fit as Bardsley doesn't have the same attacking qualities... but from a defensive point of view he did great. International debut up against David Villa and David Silva is a big ask.

 

Weir: 8 Great show from the old timer. So many times the spanish tried to squirrel the ball through a sea of legs in the box. Would've been so easy to give away more penalties.

 

McManus: 6 Along with Weir he mopped up alot of half chances... Then blew it all by misjudging that cross in the air and giving Llorente a tap-in.

 

Whittaker: 5 Tried hard but looked slow and hesitant. I was a clear penalty - unlucky you could say - but still a pen.

 

McCulloch: 4 To me it looked clear he wasn't fit. Good - if obvious - call from Levein to remove him early

 

Fletcher: 8 Takes some stick for not being a Man Utd superstar in dark blue but he does what you want a Scotland captain to do; leads by example, covers every blade of grass, hassles, harries, digs in at the back and tries to charge forward too

 

Morrison: 8 Can be proud of his performance again. Tried to play football against the best midfield in the world and wasnt totally unsuccessful.

 

Dorrans: 8 Like Morrison he had a go and I think this formation suits him. Mainstay of the team now.

 

Naismith: 8 The wee man has a lot of heart. Always trying to get up and support Kenny. Another player who I think this formation suits.

 

Miller: 9 Ran his erse off for the cause again. Sublime cross for the first goal was moment of the match for me. Was waiting to tap in the second too. Shame his legs had gone a bit when put through in a foot race with Pique late on... Would he have managed half of that if he'd been asked to run himself ragged on Friday too? For me this is why Levein kept him back for the Spanish.

 

Adam: 5 Looked promising when he first came on but lacked the killer touch. At least tried to get his foot on it.

 

Mackie: 5 Strong and quick, definitely something for the boss to work with there

 

Maloney: 4 No time for the wee man to do much

 

 

Levein: 8 Picked the right combination of team and formation. Maybe he's found something that our future can be built on there. Should he apologise for Friday? No... The only thing I think he's got wrong so far was trying to pass off the win against Leichtenstein as acceptable.

 

P.S. bumped into both Chris Robinson and Steven Pressley while getting the half time pies. Thought that'd please some of the vitriolic keyboard warriors around here

[TheBigO]

Was in the South Stand at Hampden, so hadn't seen how bad the error for the last goal was until this morning

 

McGregor: 8 A few great saves. If you want to be hyper-critical he was in position to keep the penalty out, got a hand to it but not enough...

 

Bardsley: 8 Once we were 2-0 down and having a go at them I was wishing Hutton was fit as Bardsley doesn't have the same attacking qualities... but from a defensive point of view he did great. International debut up against David Villa and David Silva is a big ask.

 

Weir: 8 Great show from the old timer. So many times the spanish tried to squirrel the ball through a sea of legs in the box. Would've been so easy to give away more penalties.

 

McManus: 6 Along with Weir he mopped up alot of half chances... Then blew it all by misjudging that cross in the air and giving Llorente a tap-in.

 

Whittaker: 5 Tried hard but looked slow and hesitant. I was a clear penalty - unlucky you could say - but still a pen.

 

McCulloch: 4 To me it looked clear he wasn't fit. Good - if obvious - call from Levein to remove him early

 

Fletcher: 8 Takes some stick for not being a Man Utd superstar in dark blue but he does what you want a Scotland captain to do; leads by example, covers every blade of grass, hassles, harries, digs in at the back and tries to charge forward too

 

Morrison: 8 Can be proud of his performance again. Tried to play football against the best midfield in the world and wasnt totally unsuccessful.

 

Dorrans: 8 Like Morrison he had a go and I think this formation suits him. Mainstay of the team now.

 

Naismith: 8 The wee man has a lot of heart. Always trying to get up and support Kenny. Another player who I think this formation suits.

 

Miller: 9 Ran his erse off for the cause again. Sublime cross for the first goal was moment of the match for me. Was waiting to tap in the second too. Shame his legs had gone a bit when put through in a foot race with Pique late on... Would he have managed half of that if he'd been asked to run himself ragged on Friday too? For me this is why Levein kept him back for the Spanish.

 

Adam: 5 Looked promising when he first came on but lacked the killer touch. At least tried to get his foot on it.

 

Mackie: 5 Strong and quick, definitely something for the boss to work with there

 

Maloney: 4 No time for the wee man to do much

 

 

Levein: 8 Picked the right combination of team and formation. Maybe he's found something that our future can be built on there. Should he apologise for Friday? No... The only thing I think he's got wrong so far was trying to pass off the win against Leichtenstein as acceptable.

 

Good assessment NLM. Gutted i wasn't there. I live abroad and actually come home for a few months this Friday. Why the hell we didn't come home a week earlier, I'll never know. Never used to miss a game too. And now we have the longest break ever between games just to taunt me while i'm home!

 

Anyway, my only problem with your post is your use of Charlie Brown's avatar! Don't change it just cos my mind's too simple to separate you though!

[DETTY29]

McCulloch is awful, he should never play for Scotland again.

Berra should have played instead of McManus.

Miller should learn how to pass (granted cross for goal was great, but simple passing is terrible).

 

Apart from that it was a great display and showed a lot of promise... with players to come back into the squad also... losing 3-2 to the world champions is an admirable defeat. The new guys did very well indeed.

 

Oh and McGregor was outstanding... Craigy will need to up his game considerably.

 

Well done lads.

McCulloch - agree

Berra - mmm - sadly he has been badly exposed as not up to it when he's played at this level. But McManus' and Whittaker defending touched on comical.

Miller - yep but all round he's needed

Another glorious failure, but generally positive.

MacGregor / Gordon - I'll stand by that Gordon is better and not just because I'm a Jambo. There wasn't anything that MacGregor did that Gordon couldn't/wouldn't have, but Gordon certainly wouldn't come rushing from his line In Prague in the first when the guy sgould have scored if he'd got a clean shot in; wouldn't have deliberately kneed Bednar in the back and getting the game stopped or punched the ball out of play last nightwhen there was a very simple catch on.

 

It's a year now to the next game. In an ideal world we would play afew friendlies and really blood the likes of Berra, Wallace, Fletcher, Adam and so on, but Levein has said that he won't have 'needless' friendlies.

 

while positive, I'll still stick by assertion that we can't just rely on sheer passion and at some point we have to start playing the way most others countries do. The Spanish aren't a yard stick to compare ourselves against but going back to Monday night, the Icelandic guys were all looking for the ball (forwads, sideways, or back) whereas our centre halves e.g. including the very good Wilson weren't always as confident in offering themselves.

[Fraggle]

McGregor 9 MOM - If he keeps it up Gordon is going to have to be at the top of his game to get the spot back

 

Bardsley 7 - Did well enough, passing let him down

Weir 6 - Distribution was poor, positioning wasn't much better looked his age but did produce a couple of good challenges

McManus 5 - Terrible defending cost us, what was he thinking about at the 3rd???

Whittaker 2 - Dire, absolutely dire from him tonight, can't take too much blame given he's not a left back. Bad night for him

McCulloch 4 - Huddy, useless, can't pass, can't challenge, can't do much, a typical Levein player.

Fletch 6 - Why does he have the captains armband? Lives of his reputation from last season at Man Utd, how many passes actually found their man (apart for the one/two).

 

Dorrans 7 - Tried hard against the best midfield in the world

Morrison 7 - Great shift, but at times looked over whelmed by what was around him

Naismith 8 - Another one that tried and tried. Covered alot of grass last night

 

Miller 7 - Poor first touch, but kept plugging away. Delivery for goal was a topper that even Beckham would be happy with.

 

Adam 5 - Had some good moments but mostly poor.

Mackie 6 - Direct running

Maloney 5 - No time

Levein 8 - Got his tactics right last night but that makes Friday night even more gaulling!!!!!

 

Overall, a much better night last night. A team that rose to the crowd and played for each other, shame the next game is so far away. Still a long way to go and we will be lucky to finish 3rd in this group.

[Coco]

Thought all the players worked incredibly hard and Levein had the tactics spot on.

 

Two performances were much worse than the rest of the team though - McManus and Whitaker. Was obvious when Rudi used to skip by Whitaker that he is not a defender - and he is now being exposed at international level.

 

Fantastic stuff from McGregor. Craig will not get that jersey back easily by the looks of things.

[We_are_the_Hearts]

Thought all the players worked incredibly hard and Levein had the tactics spot on.

 

Two performances were much worse than the rest of the team though - McManus and Whitaker. Was obvious when Rudi used to skip by Whitaker that he is not a defender - and he is now being exposed at international level.

 

Fantastic stuff from McGregor. Craig will not get that jersey back easily by the looks of things.

100% agree with all of this Coco, Whittaker also gets exposed at Champions League level. Doubt we will see either in the starting 11 come next September. Hopefully the likes of Webster, Wilson and Wallace can kick on in the next 12 months.

[DC_92]

McGregor - 9

 

Bardsley - 7

Weir - 7

McManus - 5

Whittaker - 3 - he was pish even without the penalty and red card

 

Fletcher - 8

McCulloch - 5

Morrison - 7

Dorrans - 7

Naismith - 8

 

Miller - 7

 

Adam - 7

Mackie - 5

Maloney - N/A

[Guest Dipped Flake]

The main thing isrking me after that display last night is why did we not have more of a go on Friday night. As Hartley said on the telly the other night, the team had no out ball against the Czechs; if we had gone attack mad with a 4 5 1 then we would have at least had Miller running about to aim at up front.

 

 

[JamboX2]

McGregor 8 MOTM Fantastic night for him. Good solid keeping, unlucky with the penalty nothing he could've done nothing when Iniesta scored

Bardsley 7 Good solid debut, deserves to get more caps for us, rules Whittaker out as back up right back.

Weir 6 Few shakey moments, but overall solid and coped well at the back for us.

McManus 7 Good performance from him tonight. Solid, key part of the team's spine. Played well, apart from the Llorente goal. May have been a case of the floodlights affecting his view but he came back and coped well.

Whittaker 4 Poor performance. Not a left back, serious doubts if he's international quality. Out done each time. Red card was something he'd have gotten away with at SPL level but not internationals. Seriously need to find a left back.

 

McCulloch 5 Poor game, too quiet. Wouldn't be a first pick again.

 

Morrison 8 Solid game from him tonight. Played really well, attacked the ball when he lost possession, in the faces of the opposition majority of the game.

Dorrans 7 Again, solid. Played well, looked confident.

Flethcer 8 Best game from the Man Utd played in a Scotland Strip in a long time. Good passing, especially in the 2nd half. Great performance from him.

Naismith 6 He fought hard but just wasn't really there in my opinion. Out paced (yes it's Spain blah blah woof woof). I'd have chosen Mackie, got out muscled and was prone to a few mistakes. Good take with the goal, but overall an average performance.

 

Miller 7 Good, covered a lot of ground up front. Tenacious at times. Should've taken a shot instead of trying the pass through their defence to Doerans. Lost his legs at the end of the match, should've been subbed about the 80th minute for Fletcher, S.

 

Subs;

Adam 7 Definately deserves title of super sub. Miles better than McCulloch was. Good passing for the helping direct the rest of the midfield.

Mackie 6 Should've been on a lot earlier. Possibly for Naismith. Was strong and quick. A real hope for the future. for us.

Maloney 3 On too late to do anything. Berra/Caldwell should've been on instead. Whittaker was going to get that second yellow, just looking for it. Always better to finish with 11-men, even if 1 defender isn't a left back, but then again Whittaker isn't one in the 1st place.

 

Levein 6 Good tactics last night. Subs were needed earlier in my opinion but we managed. Due to not taking Whittaker off and the fact that the 2nd half squad we played would've given the Czechs a run I give him a 6.

 

Btw, Gordon now cannot walk into the team. He needs to show his skills again. Also, Davie Weir has to bow out and we need to find a replacement, a solid one. I'd like Webster to get back into the side. But failing that we need to look for someone. Definately Weir has to step aside at the end of Celtic Cup (Which our main opponents are the Irish....or so they should be!)

[NoseLikeMahe]

JamboX2 - Glad to see somebody not ripping into McManus... Up till the 3rd goal I thought both him and Weir were doing well to snuff out a load of chances and not take the bait by giving away penalties in the box.. He made a very poor judgement of the ball's flight for the 3rd goal and takes the blame for that... but overall he didn't have a poor game.

[Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC]

Happy as larry after a defeat? Sums up the Scottish mentality nicely.

 

Spain were on the ropes after the 2nd went in yet I never truly believed we would even get a point and I bet the players and management thought the same.

[TheBigO]

JamboX2 - Glad to see somebody not ripping into McManus... Up till the 3rd goal I thought both him and Weir were doing well to snuff out a load of chances and not take the bait by giving away penalties in the box.. He made a very poor judgement of the ball's flight for the 3rd goal and takes the blame for that... but overall he didn't have a poor game.

 

I thought generally McManus did OK and looked solid but his problem is that he gives away goals (and penalties). He does it time and time again. I would say he should have been closer to Villa (I think) for the second goal too. He got the block which fell to Iniesta, but before the pass was made inside, McManus looks at the centre forward but doesn't move towards him, allowing him 3 yards to get the first shot in.

 

A minor error, really, but an error nonetheless and I'd overlook it if he hadn't stuffed the 3rd one too. He's manful and I never question his commitment to the cause but last night was just one big mistake (3rd goal) too many for me.

 

Has to be Berra. I can't understand why people have said Christophe looks out his depth. He's looked fine to me when given the chance and his latest chance was in a back four which included Broadfoot and Kenneth who were both far worse than him. Rio Ferdinand would have struggled that night! He's doing well for Wolves week in week out against top oppo and it's time we brought him in instead of McManus imo. Maybe he will find he's out his depth but McManus has been proved to be on many occasions now, so we need to give someone else a run of games

[Locky]

This isn't a personal dig at the OP or any of the posters in this thread as I don't know what your view on the national team was before the game last night. But, i'm pretty annoyed with the amount of negativity in recent weeks but just beacause we put a decent shift in against Spain last night everythings hunky dory. The team was fantastic and unlucky not to get a result but, I know alot of people who at 7.30 last night thought we were going to get trashed because the teams rubbish then by 10pm were all bursting with pride saying how proud they were to support Scotland. I, as many other JKBers are am very commited and proud of my country always not just when we're winning or playing well. Like I said this isn't a personal dig to anyone on JKB but I just wanted to point this out. Look at the game vs Liechtenstein where we had 25,000-30,000 empty seats. The narrow defeat to Czech Republic was a score line which had the critics in full voice. Personally, I don't think playing even one up front would have won us the game or even got a draw but it would have looked a bit better on paper rather than looking like we shut up shop from the start. Regardless of that though a 1-0 defeat to the Czech Republic away isn't too bad a score, they're a good side with good players. Anyway i'll shut up now.

[DC_92]

This isn't a personal dig at the OP or any of the posters in this thread as I don't know what your view on the national team was before the game last night. But, i'm pretty annoyed with the amount of negativity in recent weeks but just beacause we put a decent shift in against Spain last night everythings hunky dory. The team was fantastic and unlucky not to get a result but, I know alot of people who at 7.30 last night thought we were going to get trashed because the teams rubbish then by 10pm were all bursting with pride saying how proud they were to support Scotland. I, as many other JKBers are am very commited and proud of my country always not just when we're winning or playing well. Like I said this isn't a personal dig to anyone on JKB but I just wanted to point this out. Look at the game vs Liechtenstein where we had 25,000-30,000 empty seats. The narrow defeat to Czech Republic was a score line which had the critics in full voice. Personally, I don't think playing even one up front would have won us the game or even got a draw but it would have looked a bit better on paper rather than looking like we shut up shop from the start. Regardless of that though a 1-0 defeat to the Czech Republic away isn't too bad a score, they're a good side with good players. Anyway i'll shut up now.

 

It was a lot better than a "decent shift" by our standards. Far better teams than us haven't even looked like coming back from a 1-0 deficit against Spain, let alone a 2 goal deficit.

 

What is your point about the Liechtenstein attendance? There were nowhere near 30,000 empty seats btw. Try 15,000 and you're closer.

 

The scoreline wasn't the main reason for criticism. It was the performance/tactics. Playing a striker would have taken some of the pressure off our defence and given us a platform to counter-attack. A blind man could see that. The Czechs didn't look great to me and a glance their recent results do nothing to change that perception.

[ToadKiller Dog]

McGregor - 8 not the world class performance that some in the west are claiming put a very good solid performance made the saves a keeper of his

level should make and to be fair did them well,top of his game at the moment .

 

Bardsley - 7 good solid start better defender than Hutton by miles ,maybe not as good going forward but hard to tell as playing Spain

Weir - 6 thought he is starting to show his age at times but usually in the right place

McManus - 6 not as bad as some think still very prone to the stupid act which costs us

Whittaker - 4 the weak link tactically ,should have Wallace back in 11 months time

 

Fletcher - 7 better from him ,imposed himself more in one game than he has done for the last 10 put together

McCulloch - 4 dont need a thug in the side which is all he is

Morrison - 7 looks a good asset to the side

Dorrans - 7 Solid player who will get better

Naismith - 7 dont like the little jobbie but cant fault him for last night

 

Miller - 7 made his point last night ,best we have at that role

 

Adam - 6 looked to make the pass ,not often made it but offered a lot more than McCulloch

Mackie - 5 looked busy wants to be there another good asset to the squad

Maloney - No time

 

 

Great effort from the team ,taking nothing away from them i think Spain could have found another gear if they needed .

[rossthejambo]

This isn't a personal dig at the OP or any of the posters in this thread as I don't know what your view on the national team was before the game last night. But, i'm pretty annoyed with the amount of negativity in recent weeks but just beacause we put a decent shift in against Spain last night everythings hunky dory. The team was fantastic and unlucky not to get a result but, I know alot of people who at 7.30 last night thought we were going to get trashed because the teams rubbish then by 10pm were all bursting with pride saying how proud they were to support Scotland. I, as many other JKBers are am very commited and proud of my country always not just when we're winning or playing well. Like I said this isn't a personal dig to anyone on JKB but I just wanted to point this out. Look at the game vs Liechtenstein where we had 25,000-30,000 empty seats. The narrow defeat to Czech Republic was a score line which had the critics in full voice. Personally, I don't think playing even one up front would have won us the game or even got a draw but it would have looked a bit better on paper rather than looking like we shut up shop from the start. Regardless of that though a 1-0 defeat to the Czech Republic away isn't too bad a score, they're a good side with good players. Anyway i'll shut up now.

 

 

So we're not allowed to be critical of Scotland's performance? Much like we're not allowed to be critical of Hearts' performance as well I'm assuming?

 

How very nice of you

 

 

[Locky]

It was a lot better than a "decent shift" by our standards. Far better teams than us haven't even looked like coming back from a 1-0 deficit against Spain, let alone a 2 goal deficit.

 

What is your point about the Liechtenstein attendance? There were nowhere near 30,000 empty seats btw. Try 15,000 and you're closer.

 

The scoreline wasn't the main reason for criticism. It was the performance/tactics. Playing a striker would have taken some of the pressure off our defence and given us a platform to counter-attack. A blind man could see that. The Czechs didn't look great to me and a glance their recent results do nothing to change that perception.

 

Ok then 15,000 empty seats my bad but the point is we still don't fill Hampden unless we're playing a big team which is not a good advertisement for Scottish football. As much as I hate the English it's good to see they fill a 90,000 seater stadium for almost every game even the likes of Andorra.

[Locky]

So we're not allowed to be critical of Scotland's performance? Much like we're not allowed to be critical of Hearts' performance as well I'm assuming?

 

How very nice of you

 

I didn't mean that, as I like most people enjoy a good moan as you could probably tell in my first post. What I was meaning though is alot of mates of mine over the weekend were telling me they were embarassed to be Scottish with the Czech performance. However, after last night everyone i've spoke to about the game was going on about how it was great to see us play so well. Even on JKB lately they're have been a few threads that have had posters saying how they don't want to associate themselves with the national team.

[DC_92]

Ok then 15,000 empty seats my bad but the point is we still don't fill Hampden unless we're playing a big team which is not a good advertisement for Scottish football. As much as I hate the English it's good to see they fill a 90,000 seater stadium for almost every game even the likes of Andorra.

 

What a load of utter pish.

 

We only get good crowds against big teams? Figures from the last campaign, when we were pish:

 

Norway - 50,205

Iceland - 42,259

Macedonia - 50,214

Holland - 51,230

 

England's population = 50m

Scotland's population = 5m

 

England v Andorra attendance: 57,897 - 30,000 empty seats.

 

The attendance for the Liechtenstein game was about 37,000. For England to have the same proportion fo population going they would need a 370,000 seater stadium!

 

Our attendances are very good for a country of our size/the quality of the team.

[The Puppeteer]

I thought generally McManus did OK and looked solid but his problem is that he gives away goals (and penalties). He does it time and time again. I would say he should have been closer to Villa (I think) for the second goal too. He got the block which fell to Iniesta, but before the pass was made inside, McManus looks at the centre forward but doesn't move towards him, allowing him 3 yards to get the first shot in.

 

A minor error, really, but an error nonetheless and I'd overlook it if he hadn't stuffed the 3rd one too. He's manful and I never question his commitment to the cause but last night was just one big mistake (3rd goal) too many for me.

 

Has to be Berra. I can't understand why people have said Christophe looks out his depth. He's looked fine to me when given the chance and his latest chance was in a back four which included Broadfoot and Kenneth who were both far worse than him. Rio Ferdinand would have struggled that night! He's doing well for Wolves week in week out against top oppo and it's time we brought him in instead of McManus imo. Maybe he will find he's out his depth but McManus has been proved to be on many occasions now, so we need to give someone else a run of games

 

Might be controversial but I don't mind McManus, he may be crude at times but that's hardly a bad trait in a CB (well, unless your as crude as Gary Caldwell is). At the moment I think him and Berra would be our best partnership - Berra needs to be bloodied into the team quickly as Weir won't be an option for much longer. We also need to fast track Wilson to the national team, central defence is our biggest problem at the moment and we have to build for the future.

 

Other than that I was hugely impressed with the influence Adam had on the team, he didn't look out of his depth at all and when you consider the amount of experience he has at national level and the quality of the opposition, that is quite something. He looked very composed, always had time on the ball and was a calming influence on the rest of the team. I think he's exactly the sort of player Fletcher needs beside him and I hope to **** that Levein recognises that, rather than persisting with the pedestrian McCullough.

 

One last point - and not trying to excuse the tactics on Friday by any means - but had Miller been asked to do a lone shift up front against the Czechs, then I doubt we'd have got half the performance he gave last night.

[bighusref]

McGregor 9 - Can't be blamed for goals and again had a few good saves and handling is solid

 

Bardsley 8 - Thought he had a great debut, composed on the ball and stood up pretty well to their attack

Weir 8 - Could be his final game for us, considering our next qualifier is 11 months away. Nothing much got by him

McManus 5 - Might seem harsh, but ultimately his error cost us and it's time he was dropped (he wasn't close enough for their 2nd either)

Whittaker 6 - I thought unlucky with the pen - was a pen, but natural body shape. 2 yellows were harsh i thought - hard tackles was all, Ramos rolling around didn't help. Looked a bit slow otherwise.

 

McCulloch 5 - Why? He was letting players run off him time and time again (don't know if he was told to hold his position and allow runners to go, but that would seem crazy) and contributed nothing on the ball as usual

Fletch 7 - Always tried to play football, was always nipping at their heels. Captain's performance

 

Dorrans 7 - Worked his erchie off and wasn't afraid to have a go at them on the ball - more to come from him

Morrison 8 - Our best player over the two games for me. Looks undroppable. Hard work, composure and skill. If the shot from the half way had come off, I'd have spunked - missed by a mile, but i like his thinking!

Naismith 9 MOTM - Superb, he's on top form at the moment and showed it last night. God work ethic (something I'm writing a lot here!) and again, he kept going at them and just would accept a defeat

 

Miller 7 - Manful. His touch does let him down, but we just don't have anyone else who works a backline like Kenny does and he does it more intelligently than he gets credit for - brilliant cross for 1st goal too.

 

Adam 5 - I like Adam, but this wasn't his best, caught on the ball too often, but only cos he was trying to put his foot on it which is testiment to him. Set-pieces weren't good enough and he loses a mark for that.

Mackie 6 - Looks a find, i think. Direct and quick and caused them problems

Maloney 5 - No real time, but tried to be creative and inject some urgency into an understandably knackered team

 

Levein 9 - After the stick he's taken, I have to say he got this spot on. Last night is what we want and expect of our players, not the dilluted passion of last Friday

 

Whilst I am pleased we didn't embarrass ourselves, I find it hard to get overly excited about a team consisting of eight players I hate (starting the game, two from the bench make the hate list too) getting a credible defeat (is there such a thing?) against the best international team in the world. I wouldn't mind if I honestly felt they were excellent players but most of them are jobbing pro's that do little that inspires me to admire them or feel any sort of affinity with them

[neave]

Whittaker sold all three goals. He was absolutely awful; I'm not actually sure I saw him retain possession all night.

 

Everyone else was average to decent. McGregor, as much as it pains me to say it, was Scotland's MOTM by a mile.

[TheBigO]

This isn't a personal dig at the OP or any of the posters in this thread as I don't know what your view on the national team was before the game last night. But, i'm pretty annoyed with the amount of negativity in recent weeks but just beacause we put a decent shift in against Spain last night everythings hunky dory. The team was fantastic and unlucky not to get a result but, I know alot of people who at 7.30 last night thought we were going to get trashed because the teams rubbish then by 10pm were all bursting with pride saying how proud they were to support Scotland. I, as many other JKBers are am very commited and proud of my country always not just when we're winning or playing well. Like I said this isn't a personal dig to anyone on JKB but I just wanted to point this out. Look at the game vs Liechtenstein where we had 25,000-30,000 empty seats. The narrow defeat to Czech Republic was a score line which had the critics in full voice. Personally, I don't think playing even one up front would have won us the game or even got a draw but it would have looked a bit better on paper rather than looking like we shut up shop from the start. Regardless of that though a 1-0 defeat to the Czech Republic away isn't too bad a score, they're a good side with good players. Anyway i'll shut up now.

 

Not taken as a dig Connor. I'm was in the camp bemoaning the team before the Spain game, but if you were to check my posts, my moans were centred around the fact that we're alot better than we'd shown against Lith, Lich and CR. The players weren't allowed to show what they were made of though.

 

The reason I feel a bit proud now is that Tuesday vindicated that theory and showed me, although our coaching mentality and many other things are goosed, we do actually have players who can go out there and compete.

 

I'm still a helluva peed off with the three games previous to the Spain game and the general negativity around our game. Why we don't stop moaning about it and actually do positive things to rectify it, I don't know. And while it's all being rectified, lets just battle manfully like we did on Tuesday.