Following the resignation of Steve Clarke as manager of the national team, there was a thirst from Scottish fans for change.
Behind the scenes, they took revolution. On the field, evolution, on fire.
Sebastien Pocognoli’s football is – basically – what he promised it would be. Forward, attacking and aggressive.
However, perhaps not in the same way that everyone assumed when a fresh-faced 39-year-old walked through the gates of Hampden Park as the Tartan Army symbol of the modern progressive game.
In his first camp as Scotland boss, we were known for the good (North Macedonia away), the bad (Switzerland at home) and the ugly (Slovenia at home).
Slovenia away was somewhat all of the above in one game.
Aside from the complicated but potentially damaging implications for Euro 2028 qualification, here are three things we’ve learned from Pocognoli’s first four games in charge.
Concerns at defensive end
Pocognoli, Steve Clarke, Gordon Strachan and Alex McLeish presented Andy Robertson with a special shirt.
The back three is back.
The line-up that served predecessor Clarke so well in the early days of his Scotland tenure was Pocognoli’s preferred form at Monaco and Union Saint-Gilloise – so that’s no real surprise.
The debate lies not in its placement, but in its functionality.
On paper, it makes sense. The team has been starved of wingers and feasted on full-backs for nearly a decade.
However, with 20-year-old rising star Ben Gannon-Doak as well as Josh McPake and Findlay Curtis all included in the squad, the question was where all of Scotland’s creative wide players would fit.
Findlay Curtis came off the bench at Hampden Park after being recalled from the U21s
Gannon-Doak started both of Scotland’s last two games at wing-back with captain, and now centurion, Andy Robertson operating on the opposite wing.
With a natural winger on one side and a full-back on the other, the asymmetry of the new shape should, in theory, make Scotland more resilient. However, the lack of deep runners made them look stiffer.
When the Scotland boss switched to a back four in the closing stages of Tuesday’s horrendous defeat to Slovenia, Curtis and McPake immediately looked more threatening than the players they replaced as out-and-out wingers.
Fluster on the front line
Ryan Christie gave Scotland the lead at Hampden
The only noticeable drawback in Pocognoli’s starting system came in attack.
The new manager used a 3-5-2 in his first three games – with McGinn behind the two number 9s – before switching to a 3-4-2-1 against Slovenia as McGinn and Ryan Christie supported Oli McBurnie as the number 10 duo.
While McBurnie, Kieron Bowie and Robbie Ure all impressed at various points throughout the camp, there can only be room for one to start in Scotland’s strongest squad going forward.
Oli McBurnie (left) returned to Scotland after eight years
Talisman John McGinn – whose penalty against North Macedonia leveled him with Lawrie Reilly as the country’s fourth-leading scorer of all time – is sure to partner comeback hero Scott McTominay in the area next month after the Napoli star makes a full recovery from minor heart surgery.
McTominay and McGinn have been a dangerous double act for the better part of a decade now, so they almost have to start. But will this change be made to suit the staff or the team?
Gilmour’s Gambit
Billy Gilmour has returned to the Scotland squad after missing the World Cup through injury
At the center of Pocognoli’s press is reimagined Napoli midfielder Billy Gilmour.
The 25-year-old – who won his 50th cap on Tuesday – has gone from centre-back to striker.
Primarily a deep-lying player with exceptional quality to beat the press, the former Chelsea player was placed in a more advanced role by his new international coach to use his energy to stifle opponents and his exceptional technical ability to try to pick out blocks rather than break lines.
But like all tactical decisions, it’s a gamble.
The 25-year-old made his 50th cap for Scotland against Slovenia
Gilmour’s forward starting position often left Scotland vulnerable to counter-attacks and the lack of pace in Scotland’s back three was exposed in those moments of transition. He is also expected to be the most important component of the team in formation, thus expending a lot of energy at both ends of the field.
That said, most Scottish fans would probably single him out as their best player from this camp.
Whether he is ultimately preferred at six, eight or 10, Gilmour is clearly going to be a key player for the new coach.
Scottish Nations League fixtures
- November 13 – North Macedonia (H) 19:45
- November 16 – Switzerland (A) 19.45