It took a moment of sheer bloody mindedness to crack the nut. John McGinn, that totem of Scottish resilience, has fired his nation into the lead again...
It took a moment of sheer bloody mindedness to crack the nut. John McGinn, that totem of Scottish resilience, has fired his nation into the lead against Haiti in their Group C opener at the Boston Stadium. In a contest that threatened to become a war of attrition, it was Scotland who blinked last and hit the target when it mattered most.This was not a game for the purists. Haiti, set up in a deep, disciplined low block, offered precious little space in the final third. For the opening half hour, it felt like Scotland were running into a brick wall, their intricate passing sequences breaking on the rocks of a compact Haitian defence. The crowd grew restless. The questions started to mount. Could this side find the guile to break down a team so clearly happy to sit and wait for a mistakeThe answer came from a set piece, the great leveller in modern football. A ball lumped into the mixer, a scramble, and then the sight every Tartan Army member dreams of. McGinn, with that unwavering ability to be in the right place at the right time, poked the ball home from close range. It was not pretty. It was not fluid. But it was clinical. It was the kind of goal that wins you tournaments, or at the very least, gets you out of a group.What does this mean for the rest of the group It puts Scotland in the driving seat, no doubt. Three points are on the board, and the pressure now shifts entirely onto Haiti. They have to come out and play. They have to abandon that defensive shell and chase the game. For Scotland, that presents a glorious opportunity. If they can stay compact and hit on the break, the second goal is there for the taking. Squeaky bum time for the Haitians, but a moment of pure, unadulterated joy for the Scots. Game on.
