4 Takeaways From Scotland’s Rousing Win Over Haiti At World Cup

Scotland has participated in the FIFA Men’s World Cup eight times and it has never advanced to the knockout stages. On Saturday night in New England, the Scotts took a major step towards advancing after defeating Haiti 1-0 in its opening game. In the first half, after Scotland took the lead through John McGinn, it appeared as if the team was going to find its way to a multi-goal win. That was not the case, however, as Haiti was relentless over the final 20 minutes (plus stoppage time) and nearly equalized several times. When the final whistle sounded, Scotland escaped with three points. The games will only get harder for Scotland as contenders Brazil and Morocco await. But with eight of the 12 third place teams qualifying for the knockouts, Scotland has a great chance to finally advance out of the group stages after eight failed attempts dating back to 1954. Here are my takeaways: Despite a 1-0 score that could suggest a lackluster performance, Scotland was quite good in this game and made an emotional return to the tournament after a 28-year absence. The Scottish players were clearly moved by the enthusiastic support they received at Boston Stadium. But Scotland showed a lot of individual moments of quality that proved to be enough. For the first 70 minutes, Scotland was superior in terms of quality. For the last 20 minutes had to change its approach as Haiti raised its level and began applying pressure. Scotland’s defense would bend but not break. In the end, it was enough to send the Tartan Army happily off into the night. Despite being the second-lowest ranked team at this World Cup, Haiti showed no fear of Scotland. Head coach Sébastien Migné clearly inspired his team to make the most of the opportunity and the team probably had extra motivation from the difficult path to get to this point after not playing an World Cup qualifiers at home due to political instability in the country. From the opening whistle, Haiti did not sit deep and bunker. Instead, it played with a high line and pressed whenever Scotland was in possession. Whenever Haiti would force a turnover or gain possession, its players would immediately rush into a direct attack on goal. There was very little back passing or patience in building up a possession from Haiti. Instead, it was aggressive runs and ambitious passing. When that did not work, Haiti was not afraid to try shots from distance. It was entertaining to watch at times and initially Scotland did not look prepared for this approach from Haiti. Scotland eventually controlled most of the first half, but the second half was a different story. After the second half hydration break, Haiti had a burst of energy to become the dominant team and play inspiring soccer. Haiti ended up with a 15-9 edge in shots. Ultimately, however, the equalizer never came for Haiti. Scotland’s defense was just good enough and Haiti missed a little bit of quality needed to finish. While most of Scotland’s attack ran through Scott McTominay, winger Ben Gannon-Doak had a very strong performance and was at the heart of Scotland’s best chances. In the 17th minute, Gannon-Doak used his dribbling to draw defenders before setting up McTominay for a shot off the post. On the goal in the 28th minute, it was Gannon-Doak who took a ball from Ché Adams and then dribbled inside the box before sending a low cross that would eventually result in John McGinn’s goal. At just 20 years old, Gannon-Doak is one of Scotland’s top young players, and he was very important to Scotland’s World Cup qualifying campaign. His first goal came in the second to last qualifier against Greece. Days later, he assisted on McTominay’s bicycle kick goal against Denmark in a 4-2 win that clinched qualification. English Premier club Bournemouth spent £20 million for Gannon-Doak last summer but his debut season for the club was limited by a serious hamstring injury. If he is healthy at this tournament, Scotland could have the weapon it needs to advance to the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time in its history. Scotland benefited tremendously earlier in the day when Brazil and Morocco played to a 1-1 draw in New Jersey. With this win and that result, Scotland now has a two-point lead atop the table after all teams have played one game. Group C is as close to a group of death as this expanded tournament gets as both Morocco and Brazil are contenders. But Scotland now controls its fate. A surprising draw against Morocco in its next game or against Brazil will almost certainly be enough. Three points might also be enough to be one of the top eight third place teams, but Scotland must also focus on the goal differential tiebreaker if it loses the next two games. Narrow losses will be to Scotland’s benefit. As for Haiti, this loss was deflating. The team played fearless soccer in this game and its effort in the second half was admirable. But the realistic take is that this was a must-win game for Scotland or Haiti. A loss now means Haiti must defeat either Morocco or Brazil to have a chance. The players will surely continue to put forth stronger efforts, but the talent gap is very wide and a win over either team would be a historical upset.