Lack of goals and defensive mistakes – Where it went wrong for Steve Clarke

Steve Clarke has stepped down as Scotland head coach in the wake of their World Cup exit.

Clarke’s side picked up just three points in Group C to end up behind winners Brazil and Morocco with a minus three goal difference, which was not enough to finish as one of the eight best third-placed teams who will go through to the last 32.

Here, the Press Association looks at where it went wrong for the Scots and their manager.

Not enough goals

A favourite chant of the Tartan Army is ‘Scotland’s on fire – your defence is terrified’. But, put simply, defences are not. Clarke brought five strikers – Lawrence Shankland, Che Adams, Lyndon Dykes, Ross Stewart and George Hirst – and scored one goal, through a midfielder. John McGinn’s deflected shot proved the difference in the opening game against Haiti at Boston Stadium. However, against a team ranked 83 in the world, Scotland had only two shots on target and ultimately paid the price. A 1-0 loss to Morocco at the same venue and a 3-0 defeat by Brazil in Miami – albeit two teams in the top 10 in the world – reinforced the lack of threat, which is a long-term problem. Scotland have scored just four goals in their last three major tournaments and conceded 16. The new boss will find the same problem.

Lack of creativity

The lack of goals is, in part, due to a lack of invention in Scotland’s play. It is not the case of forwards missing numerous chances. Scotland are not free flowing and do not create much in front of goal. Indeed, it was a struggle in the three games to penetrate the opposition box. Players did not take top-class club form on to the international stage, although midfielder Lewis Ferguson showed up well. Winger Ben Gannon-Doak was the great hope going into the tournament, but probably too much faith was put in a player still trying to make his way at club level. There were a few chances made against Brazil, with Scott McTominay having three efforts on goal, but the game by then was gone. One win in the last nine tournament games is a record that the new head coach must address head on.

Costly defensive mistakes

If you are not scoring many goals then your defence needs to be watertight. Scotland lost a goal to Morocco after 70 seconds when Grant Hanley allowed Ismael Saibari to run off his shoulder and the game plan disintegrated. Against Brazil, Scott McKenna’s horror mistake when he was caught in possession inside his own area allowed Vinicius Junior to open the scoring after just seven minutes. Jack Hendry was then caught in possession by the Real Madrid striker, who again scored, only for the goal to be ruled off for a foul on the Scotland defender. On the stroke of half-time, captain Andy Robertson’s slack pass inside his own area led to the Brazil star scoring his second, with Nathan Patterson allowing him a free header at the back post. All avoidable. All hugely damaging.

Approach

Clarke has used various formations over the years. He started with two strikers against Haiti – Adams and Shankland – but to no avail. Familiar problems of chance creation remained. The decision to play left-back Kieran Tierney in left midfield against Morocco raised eyebrows and the Scots struggled, especially in the first half. A cautious approach and lack of attacking threat has been a theme of Clarke’s reign. After promising to learn lessons from the failings of Euro 2020 and Euro 2024, Scotland fared little better in the United States and the frustrated Tartan Army will look for better from Clarke’s successor.