Sébastien Pocognoli grimaced on Friday when recalling his playing debut for Belgium. Alessandro del Piero and Italy discovered favourable opposition when preparing for the 2008 World Cup. Pocognoli will also look back, in time, at his maiden game as the head coach of Scotland. Blue skies, a dainty stadium in Ljubljana and a second half display that provided glimpses of optimism in respect of Scotland’s world post-Steve Clarke. The best-forgotten first 45 minutes can be explained by a squad operating under a new regime. By full-time, Slovenia were grateful for their point. Scottish players took deserved applause.
Scotland’s failing here was a familiar one. A lack of goals haunted Clarke. This version of Scotland did at least create a handful of openings. Scott McTominay, a key attacking threat, was missing. Instilling ruthlessness in a team is no easy task but it is one Pocognoli has the coaching credentials to meet. Slovenia, on this evidence, have the more significant challenges.
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