Scotland are still a game away from their first World Cup since 1998, although they failed to stage a remarkable comeback in a 3-2 defeat in Greece after Belarus did them a favor against Denmark.
The Scots, trailing 3-0 after 63 minutes against Greece, now face a winner-take-all match against Group C leaders Denmark at Hampden on Tuesday, having drawn 2-2 against bottom team Belarus in Copenhagen.
Goals from Ben Gannon-Doak and Ryan Christie gave Scotland hope in the final 20 minutes and they threatened to equalize on several occasions when Greek captain Tasos Bakasetas, scorer in the opener, was sent off in the 84th minute for a second bookable offence.
Greek goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos made a superb save with his leg to deny Scott McTominay and denied George Hirst a shot from six yards either side of the red card.
The Danes saw their one-goal lead over Belarus overturned within three minutes of the second half and the Tartan Army celebrated a 2-2 draw in Copenhagen after an agonizing wait of several minutes after the final whistle in the Athens suburb of Piraeus.
Scotland had more than enough chances to swing the game back in their favour, with Che Adams missing huge chances to equalize at 1-0 and then again at 3-2 in the second half. His debauchery was punished by Greece.
Che Adams had a night to forget in front of goal
Craig Gordon, 42, made five saves in the first half to replace the injured Angus Gunn.
Ultimately the damage was done by Scotland’s dismal start, which saw Greece take the lead after seven minutes through Bakasetas before second-half strikes from Konstantinos Karetsas and Christos Tzolis put the game out of reach.
Scotland’s 42-year-old backup goalkeeper Craig Gordon, who had not played a competitive match for six months, made five saves in the first half to keep his team in the game. He put in a hugely impressive performance as a replacement for the injured Angus Gunn.
The dramatic ending, in Greece and Copenhagen, distracted from another worrying Scotland performance, but Clarke will know more will be needed if they are to beat Denmark on Tuesday and reach the 2026 World Cup.
Clarke: “I was expecting a 3-0 play-off”
Scotland boss Steve Clarke asks if he was aware of how the match between Denmark and Belarus was going:
“Only very late in the match, because when it was 3-0, I put different instructions on the pitch. I won’t tell you what, but it was more with the play-off in mind.
“Then all of a sudden we got to 3-1 and realized the other game was as it was, so those instructions were taken back and we did our best to get something out of the game here.
“It was a crazy game, a crazy night. We conceded bad goals, scored good goals. We looked like a threat every time we went forward. Just like Greece. Both goalkeepers made big saves.
“It’s probably a great spectacle for the spectators, but it’s not a good result.
“Really the cause of it is the long balls up the field. It’s something to keep an eye on and hopefully it’s just a one-off night because it’s not normally something that gives us too much trouble.”
Robertson: Hampden shooting – what more could you ask for?
Scotland defender Andy Robertson speaking to the BBC:
“That’s what we wanted. Today it’s such a strange game that we can’t concede three goals.
“We had eight or nine very big chances. We succeeded on the offensive side but not on the defensive side.
“But we fought back. Denmark scored points but that shows how much better Belarus is.
“Winner takes all on Tuesday. People were ignoring us but now we have a play-off and a final to play on Tuesday.
“We heard the fans start to applaud when we were 3-1 down, which was a bit strange, but we didn’t know what happened.
“We knew something had happened, but when the players come on they are well aware of it. We waited a long time to see if they dropped points, but a shootout at Hampden, what more could you ask for?
“I hope everyone will be behind us on Tuesday.”
Christie: We have already closed Denmark
Scotland midfielder Ryan Christie speaking to the BBC:
“We are gutted because we wanted to come here and win or draw. On the other hand, the other result gives us a chance on Tuesday night that we all wanted.
“It was frustrating because we worked all week. Greece came out of the traps very well.
“They probably deserved to go ahead. We progressed in the latter part of the first half, and I think their second and third were against the run of play.
“I knew we were still in the game. It’s a little bit different because in our heads we were just thinking about trying to score a point, score another goal.
“I think looking at the second half, from an offensive point of view, it’s the best we’ve played in the last 18 months.
“We know we have already closed Denmark and I hope we can do it again.”
The draw for the 2026 World Cup will take place on December 5 in Washington.
President Trump will join FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the John F. Kennedy Center – a performance venue where Trump is president – to decide the schedule for the group stage.
In announcing the location of the draw at the White House in August, Trump said the World Cup was “the greatest sporting event,” while Infantino said the 104 matches would be like “104 Super Bowls.”
The draw will take place from 12:00 p.m. local time (5:00 p.m. UK time).
The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup takes place from June 11 to July 19, 2026.
This will be the 23rd edition of the tournament.
