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Key events
78 min: Crikey! Bowie misses a sitter, latching on to a Gilmour pass and curling a shot wide of the upright from 12 yards out with only Oblak to beat and the goal at his mercy. It’s an awful miss.
77 min: Bowie has looked lively since coming on and now forces Oblak to cough up a cheap throw-in for Scotland with an undustrious press.
75 min: Slovenian double-substitution: Vipotnic and Balkovec on for Sporar and Brekalo.
73 min: Ferguson’s delivery is sublime and met by the head of McBurnie, whose header brings a reflex save out of Oblak from point-black range. Scotland are not so much knocking on the door as trying to kick it open.
72 min: Lewis Ferguson tries his luck with a pot-shot from distance but his effort is blocked. Moments later, Stephen Welsh picks out Bowie with a terrific slide-rule pass. The substitute is unable to lift the ball over Oblak, who puts it out for a corner.
70 min: Kieron Bowie chops inside a defender and sends a low shot straight at Oblak. The susbtitute kicks out in frsutration at a divot as he too glares accusingly at the cut-up pitch.
66 min: Kieron Bowie is on for Robbie Ure and Scotland have another corner. McGinn’s delivery is excellent and met by Aaron Hickey. He sends his header drifting narrowly wide of the far post.
64 min: Scotland finally win a corner and have to wait to take it as Slovenia make a double-substitution. Zec and Zabukovnik come on for Drkusij and Elsnik. Nothing comes of the set-piece.
62 min: McBurnie connects with a McGinn cross and his header goes over the bar off the head of David Brekalo. Slovenia are awarded a goal-kick, much to McBurnie’s disgust. Scotland’s wait for a first corner goes on.
61 min: Ure latches on to a first-time pass from GIlmour and wins a corner for Scotland, their first of the match. Actually it isn’t – the Sevilla man was offside.
59 min: Gilmour and McBurnie combine to good effect on the edge of the Slovenia penalty area but the Napoli midfielder’s low shot doesn’t trouble Oblak, who gets down to save comfortably.
59 min: Scotland have been much improved in this second half but with their high line, still look extremely vulnerable to counter-attacks.
56 min: John McGinn is clattered by Adam Cerin and wins a free-kick near the centre-circle in the Slovenia half. Lewis Ferguson lofts the ball into the penalty area, where Oblak comes for it and doesn’t get it. Stephen Welsh tries to lob the loose ball towards the vacant goal but Vanja Drkusic heads it away and wins a free-kick.
54 min: McGinn tries to stand the ball up for McBurnie near the byline and the Scotland striker leaps to contest it with Oblak. The Slovenian looked to have carried it wide for a corner but wins a free-kick because an outfield player had the audacity to jump in the same postal district as him. Goalkeepers, eh?
51 min: Oof! Oli McBurnie is played in behind the Slovenia defence and finds himself in a one-on-one with Oblak. The Slovenia goalkeeper’s legs are gaping and you could drive a bus between them, but McBurnie tries to take the ball around him instead of going for the nutmeg. Oblak almost certainly can’t believe his luck as he plucks the ball off the Scottish striker’s toe.
50 min: Scotland have started the second half on the front foot but are struggling to create anything much in the way an opening. They’re playing with a high line today but their wing-backs Robertson and Aaron Hickey are struggling to have any sort of impact on the game.
46 min: John McGinn spins his man, gallops up the right flank and plays the ball inside to Billy Gilmour. His pass wide to Andy Robertson takes a massive bobble off the poor surface and the Scottish captain is unable to control the ball.
Second half: Slovenia 0-0 Scotland
46 min: Scotland get the ball rolling, with no changes in personnel on either side and the sound of bagpipes audible in the Ljubljana air.
Half-time: Slovenia 0-0 Scotland
Peeeeeeeep! It’s scoreless at the break although both teams have hit the woodwork. Scotland finished the half with something of a flourish but were poor for the first 40 minutes. The Slovenian trio of Matko, Sturm and Sporar have caused Scotland’s defence all manner of problems and will rue their missed chances during a long period of first-half dominance.
45 min: Another excellent pass from McGinn and Robbie Ure’s low daisy-cutter from distance hits the foot of the right post. Much, much better from Scotland.
43 min: An excellent pass from John McGinn sends Robbie Ure on his way down the left and his cross drops at the feet of McBurnie whose back is to goal. He tees up Hickey, whose shot is blocked.
42 min: Andraz Sporar wins a free-kick wide on the left after the referee unfairly judges Aaron Hickey to have fouled him as the pair contested a 50-50 ball. Nothing comes of it.
40 min: We’re approaching half-time and Scotland have yet to have a shot on or off-target. They’ve had one touch of the ball in the Slovenia penalty area.
37 min: Gunn races off his line to collect a free-kick but gets nowhere near it. His blushes are spared by the linesman’s offside flag. The pitch at the Sozice Stadium is cutting up really badly.
35 min: On the advice of the fourth official, Andy Robertson is penalised for some sort of off-the-ball incident he got embroiled in with Zarnicek. I’m not sure what he’s supposed to have done and judging by his reaction, neither is he.
34 min: Scotland get forward again but are having trouble getting long balls to stick upfield. I suspect Oli McBurnie will not be pleased with his own contribution in this first half, after five years out of his naitonal side. His hold-up play has been poor on the few occasions the ball has come his way.
31 min: Slovenia corner. Vanja Drkusic connects with the inswinger at the near post and hits the outside of said upright. It was a decent effort from a tricky position.
30 min: It hasn’t been the most exciting of football matches thus far but the lively Aljosa Matko gets the locals off their seats with a wild shot from a tight angle that goes harmlessly wide.
27 min: Jack Hendry puts the ball out for a corner under pressure from Sturm. I think he was trying to pass the ball back to Gunn, but his delivery was dreadful. The Scotland defender casts an accusatory glance in the direction of the pitch and nothing comes of the set-piece, which is overhit.
26 min: Gunn goes Route One, booting the ball long and far down the middle. Slovenia win the header.
24 min: Matko gets on the ball down the right flank again, pouncing on a misplaced Gilmour pass. Slovenia work the ball across to the other side of the pitch but are forced backwards by Scotland.
22 min: Scotland have got a foothold in the game after being dominated early doors but have yet to fanshion anything resembling a scoring chance. On another day, Slovenia could be 2-0 up already.
19 min: McBurnie loses the ball halfway inside his own half but Lewis Ferguson immediately wins possession back for Scotland. Robertson and Gilmour combine down the inside left, trying to find an opening.
17 min: Scotland try to play the ball out from the back under a heavy Slovenian press. John McGinn draws a foul from David Brekalo and the visitors get a chance to ease the pressure.
16 min: Slovenia corner. Robbie Ure clears the inswinger with a thumping header at the near post.
14 min: Danijel Sturm latches on a toa long diagonal and sends in a low cross from the left. Sporar gets in front of McKenna and somehow steers his effort wide of the far post. That’s an awful miss and a huge let-off for Scotland.
11 min: Andy Robertson tries to play Robbie Ure in behind the Slovenian with a weighted pass but overhits his delivery. Slovenia break upfield and Aljosa Matko drills in a low cross in from the right but neither Sporar nor Sturm are able to get on the end of it. Slovenia are looking dangerous, while Scotland look very porous at the back.
9 min: Oli McBurnie is penalised for a blatant barge on Drkusic as he jumped to try to connect with a cross from the left. Aaron Hickey’s follow-up shot is blocked but wouldn’t have counted anyway.
8 min: Slovenia carve Scotland open and Danijel Sturm converts a cross from the right, arrowing a shot past Angus Gunn from about 12 yards out. The flag goes up!
5 min: Angus Gunn advances off his line to grab a cross that Scott McKenna was about to head clear. The Dinjamo Zagreb defender heard the shout from his goalkeeper and left it to him.
3 min: John McGinn tries to advance upfield but is held by Slovenia centre-back Vanja Drkusic. The Scottish midfielder appeals for a free-kick but doesn’t get one.
3 min: Erik Janza hoys a long throw into the Scotland penalty area, where Angus Gunn leaps to claim the ball at the second time of asking.
Slovenia v Scotland is go …
1 min: Following a coin-toss that couldn’t be conducted until Slovenia defender Jaka Bisol had been summoned to join his captain Jan Oblak, Scotland’s captain Andy Robertson and the referee, the game kicks off. I’m going to hazard a guess that the Leeds defender might be the ref’s Slovenian point of contact out on the pitch because Oblak will be in goal. If you know better, feel free to get in touch and educate me.
Not long now: Led by Romanian referee Horatiu Fasnic and his team of match officials, the teams march out on to the Stadion Sozice sward and line up for the anthems. The players of Scotland are wearing red (well, coral or salmon pink, if you want to be pedantic) shirts, blue shorts and red socks. Kick-off is just a couple of minutes away.
Sebastien Pocognoli: “We had a good camp, we reached all the aspects that we wanted to reach on the pitch but also off the pitch,” said Scotland’s head coach during his press conference at the Stozice Arena.
“Regarding the first game for Scotland, I’m excited because we want to see what we worked on this week. I’m very curious to see if we can produce this. I hope we are well balanced, well focused and well concentrated in the good moment, but also in the challenging moments.
“The mental aspect to have a first game with a new gaffer, with new ideas, it’s a consideration, the mental aspect. We try to plan the games on the physical aspect, the tactical aspect and on the performance aspect. These will be the last details.”
After today’s game against Slovenia, Scotland are scheduled to play Switzerland at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Following that, they’ll face North Macedonia next Saturday before wrapping up the lengthy internatinoal break with a home game against today’s opponents the following Tuesday.
Andy Robertson: This isn’t the Scotland skippper’s first Slovenian rodeo, as both he and the home team’s head coach Bostjan Cesar were on the pitch when last these two sides met in 2017. “When the international break comes we always get excited for it,” he said yesterday. “This one’s no different and we look forward to the challenge ahead that we’ve got. It’s been enjoyable. We’ve had a good week. Obviously, the manager’s trying to get his ideas across.
“It’s a really new squad, we’re trying to get to know each other, trying to make sure we keep the values that have worked well for us but also adapting to the new squad and the new characters. It’s been a really important week. I think the manager’s enjoyed it. I think the staff have enjoyed it. It’s all about preparing for the games now. We’ve got four games, which is quite unique. It’s something that we’re all looking forward to.
“We’re going to be tested. Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday is intense when you’re at club level. We’re not really used to that kind of schedule at international level. It’s going to be intense, but at the end of the day, footballers want to play football. I suppose it will be a learning curve for us, but one that we want to learn on the job. We still demand results and we still expect results. It’s up to us to try and produce them.”
Scotland: The national team’s unproven head coach represents a potentially shrewd gamble made by an organisation that could do without another embarrassing episode, writes Ewan Murray.
Slovenia v Scotland line-ups
Slovenia (possible 4-4-2): Oblak; Brekalo, Bijol, Drkusic, Janza; Karnicnik, Cerin, Elsnik, Matko; Sturm, Sporar.
Subs: Vidovsek, Leban, Balkovec, Zabukovnik, Kuzmic, Begic, Lovric, Celar, Svetlin, Zec, Vipotnik, Horvat.
Scotland (possible 5-3-2): Gunn; Hickey, McKenna, Hendry, Welsh, Robertson; McGinn, Gilmour, Ferguson; McBurnie, Ure.
Subs: Kelly, Bain, Binks, Doig, Christie, Miller, McPake, Gannon-Doak, Graham, Bowie, Patterson, Montgomery.
Oli McBurnie starts for Scotland
Scotland: Sebastien Pocognoli picks his first Scotland team and has handed debuts to Swansea City centre-back Stephen Welsh and Sevilla striker Robbie Ure. Oli McBurnie also gets the nod and will make his first appearance for Scotland since March 2021.
Early Slovenia team news: The headline story from the home camp is that Benjamin Sesko has withdrawn from their squad. The Manchester United striker has featured in six Manchester United games this season, mainly off the bench, but is suffering from a shin injury.
“I am very sorry that I will have to miss the next matches of the national team,” he posted on Instagram. “I have always played for Slovenia and will always play with heart and pride. The most important thing now is to fully dedicate myself to recovery. “I am already working on getting back on the field as soon as possible and helping the national team and the club again.”
Slovan Bratislava striker Andraz Sporar could lead the Slovenia line in the big man’s absence. Defenders Kenan Bajiric and Marcel Ratnik have also been forced out of the squad with injury. Goalkeeper Jan Oblak will skipper the Slovenia side and is set to earn his 85th international cap.
Early Scotland team news: After his omission from Scotland’s World Cup squad caused no end of consternation, Oli McBurnie earns the recall his early-season Premier League performances for Hull City deserve. He is joined by a host of untried talent, including Luis Binks (Brondby), Luke Graham (Stoke City), Luke Graham (Stoke City), Josh McPake (Hearts), Robbie Ure (Sevilla), Colby Donovan (Celtic), John McCracken (Bradford City) and Stephen Welsh (Swansea City).
There is no place in Pocognoli’s squad for World Cup particpants Lyndon Dykes, Ross Stewart, George Hirst, Grant Hanley, John Souttar and Anthony Ralston, while goalkeeper Craig Gordon has retired.
Scott McTominay, Che Adams, Lawrence Shankland are all unavailable through injury, while Kenny McLean and Kieran Tierney also withdrew from the squad earlier this week. Along with McBurnie, Aaron Hickey, Lewis Ferguson, Josh Doig and Kieron Bowie return to the Scotland squad after missing out on World Cup selection.
Group B1: Slovenia v Scotland
New campaign, new coach, clean slate. Scotland are in Ljubljana to play their Nations League opener under their freshly appointed head coach Sebastien Pocognoli. The former Belgium defender was appointed Steve Clarke’s replacement, following the 63-year-old’s decision to step down in the wake of Scotland’s underwhelming performances at the World Cup and says he is “excited and curious” to learn about his charges.
Pocognoli has introduced eight uncapped players to a squad from which several members of the squad that went to North America have been culled. A full fifteen of the players in the original Scotland squad for this game were not at the World Cup under Clarke. Slovenia have nevewr beaten Scotland in five previous meetings but have drawn their two most recent encounters. This is their head caoch Bostjan Cesar’s fourth game in charge and he is looking for his second win.
The last time Scotland played in Slovenia, a 2-2 draw in October 2017 ended their hopes of qualifying for Russia 2018 and prompted the then coach Gordon Strachan to question Scottish football’s DNA. They have qualified for three major tournaments since and with their qualification for Euro 2028 all but assured before a ball is kicked (caveat: this is Scotland we’re talking about), it will be down to Pocognoli to try to get his team over the historically insurmountable hurdle of getting them past the group stage. Kick-off at Stadion Stozice is at 2pm (BST) but we’ll have team news and build-up in the meantime.
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