The most extraordinary upshot of an extraordinary evening was that Scotland’s dream of qualifying automatically for the World Cup remains alive. Steve Clarke has Belarus to thank for that, their surprise draw in Denmark leaving Scotland in precisely the position they had sought before this clash with Greece. If Scotland beat Denmark in Glasgow on Tuesday, they will top this section.
The dust might just have settled on this preposterous fixture by then. Scotland trailed by three at one point before hauling themselves back into proceedings against a Greek team who finished with 10 men.
Greece’s win by the odd goal in five was a merited one but, after a silent wait for full time in Denmark to arrive, the Tartan Army celebrated as 10 added minutes in Copenhagen drew to a close. Clarke and his Scotland players did not seem to know how to act, which was totally understandable. For all the shortcomings laid bare here, the spirit summoned was quite striking. Clarke’s task in the coming days is to combine that with far more assuredness, especially in defence.
“A crazy game, crazy night,” said Clarke, who puffed his cheeks out and shook his head before beginning post-match media duties. “We conceded bad goals and scored good goals. I have said it repeatedly about this group, they give everything. They didn’t give up.
