Moldova 0-2 Scotland: Che Adams and Nathan Patterson secure World Cup play-off spot for Tartan Army

AFP via Getty Images
Jonathan Gorrie12 November 2021

Scotland secured a World Cup qualification play-off spot ahead of next winter’s tournament in Qatar by beating Moldova in Chișinău.

Goals from Nathan Patterson and Che Adams saw Steve Clarke’s side put themselves in contention for a first World Cup since 1998 and took the pressure off of what looks to be a difficult fixture against Denmark at Hampden Park on Monday evening.

While the game was nowhere near as dramatic as the draw and subsequent penalty shootout win over Serbia exactly a year ago, it sometimes threatened to be.

Lax defending almost saw the away side fall behind in the first-half and, had it not been for Craig Gordon’s penalty save with ten minutes to go (as well as Kieran Tierney’s sublime clearance in the scramble after), could have been facing a needlessly nervy finish.

In a jarring juxtaposition against the win away in the Faroe Islands in October, Scotland created a number of good chances.

Andy Robertson, Billy Gilmour and Adams could all have scored prior to Patterson - who already looks a guaranteed starter for the national team on only his sixth cap - and Adams in particular was unlucky not to have scored at least once more, with two goals ruled out following VAR intervention.

A year on from the famous win in Serbia, Scotland created what could be another big night in the development of this new generation, led by the excellent John McGinn.

Though there’s still a lot to play for, such evenings are getting more frequent under Clarke’s watch. That, if nothing else, is progress.

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