Scotland opened the Sebastien Pocognoli era with a 0-0 draw against Slovenia in Ljubljana, taking a Nations League point from a game their head coach described as “two games in the same game”. The Scots were disjointed in the first half, but they took control after the break and created enough chances to win, only to settle for a goalless draw.
Pocognoli said the first half was not what he expected in terms of structure. “We were in between for the press, actually we were a little bit surprised about the formation of Slovenia, but at half-time we fixed this and you can see that the second half was much better,” he said. He added that his side learned to stick together, defend the box, be resilient and be patient to change the game.
The match in Ljubljana featured two Scotland debuts, a return for Oli McBurnie and a change of shape after Steve Clarke’s seven-year tenure ended following the World Cup in the summer. It was also only the first of four games in this international window.
Billy Gilmour was central to Scotland’s improvement. The Napoli midfielder missed the World Cup campaign after a heartbreaking injury against Curacao in Scotland’s final home warm-up game, but he returned to the heart of midfield alongside Lewis Ferguson. Former Scotland midfielder John Collins called Gilmour “the catalyst for everything” in the second half, while Pat Nevin noted he played further forward than Ferguson, close to a creative 10. Gilmour played 32 passes into the final third, more than any player on the pitch. He combined with McBurnie on the edge of the box to set up a shot for himself, slipped in Robbie Ure who opted to cross rather than shoot, and picked out Kieron Bowie with a through ball that should have resulted in a goal.
Pocognoli made a half-time tweak to bring Gilmour deeper, making it harder for Slovenia to play through Scotland and giving his side greater control of the ball. “We fixed the position of Billy to be a little bit lower and to have Oli McBurnie a little bit more in his box, with two sixes and two 10s, and we were more compact to regain the ball when we lost it,” he said. The coach also praised Gilmour as “a fantastic player” who is creative, always looks forward and is ready to find a solution with a clear game plan.
Stephen Welsh was one of two Scotland debutants, playing on the left of a back three despite being right-footed. Scotland struggled defensively at times in the first half as Slovenia played over the top of them, but Welsh’s positioning after the break helped change the game. His average position was short of the halfway line in the first half, yet by the end it was in Slovenian territory, and his most common pass shifted from centre-back partner Scott McKenna to Andy Robertson at wing-back. Former Scotland defender Callum Davidson said the back three’s starting position changed the game, having been too deep and worried about the ball over the top before Scotland nullified that and kept possession. Welsh created a clear goalscoring chance with a through ball to Bowie and finished with 16 passes into the final third and the highest accuracy rating.
Finishing remains the familiar issue. McBurnie made his first Scotland appearance since 2021, with injuries to Che Adams and Lawrence Shankland and his strong Hull City form opening the door. Ure, fresh from his move from Sirius in Sweden to Sevilla, made his debut, while Sassuolo’s Kieron Bowie came off the bench in the second half. Those three have one club goal between them this season – Bowie’s against Juventus – and none for Scotland in their limited caps. All three were presented with chances, though. McBurnie failed to round Jan Oblak when through and had a header from a corner beaten away by the Atletico Madrid goalkeeper; Ure drove a low shot off the post in the first half from outside the box and later opted for a cut-back when slipped in by Gilmour; Bowie ended with the highest expected goals rating in the Scotland team at 0.94 despite playing only 25 minutes.
It is only one game, and Scotland will not face a goalkeeper of Oblak’s quality in every match, but there is a lingering concern about the national side’s goalscoring ability. They have managed one goal in their last four competitive games. Davidson summed up the disappointment: “International level is all about taking your chances, you don’t get too many. It’s about being really clinical, so for these strikers it’s important when you get games like this to take your chances. That’s the disappointment from today.”