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Gambler McLeish sends Scots soaring
Scotland's Craig Beattie (R) celebrates with team-mate Kenny Miller after scoring the last-minute winner in the 2-1 qualifying victory over Georgia in UEFA EURO 2008 Group B at Hampden Park on 24 March 2007.
(REUTERS) David Moir
(FIFA.com) 24 May 2007
This month witnessed a bit of political history in Scotland when the country voted in its first devolved nationalist government, edging itself ever closer to a divorce from the 300-year-old union with England.
Yet it wasn't only at the ballot box that a milestone was marked. May also witnessed Alex McLeish's side move up to 14th in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, breaking into the top 15 for the first time in the list's 14-year history, and capping a remarkable rise from the doldrums.
Scots are certainly enjoying the experience of peering down on the likes of Sweden and Mexico all the more because they well remember that it is not so long since they were gazing up at less illustrious football nations such as Guatemala and Burkina Faso. That was during Berti Vogts' ill-fated spell in charge, during which Scotland slumped to an all-time low of 88th as the German led them to 17 defeats, seven draws and just eight wins in his two-and-a-half-year tenure.
Such form left qualification for Germany 2006 out of the question, but now, at the halfway stage of their bid to escape from a truly horrific UEFA EURO 2008 preliminary section that features Italy, France and Ukraine, their hopes of making the journey to Austria and Switzerland are still very much alive. Few, certainly, would have expected Scotland to be level with France and Ukraine at the top of Group B at this point in proceedings, and while McLeish's side have played a game more than their rivals, the fixture list would appear to give the Scots real hope of fortifying their current position.
Alex McLeish has given the Scotland job the thumbs-up after being warmly received by both the country's players and supporters.(REUTERS)David MoirFaith repaid by Boyd and Beattie
There were those who feared a collapse when Walter Smith, who had led the team to that historic victory over France, was lured back to Rangers at a critical point in the qualifying campaign. McLeish, however, has impressed everyone thus far. When he was first unveiled, this veteran of three FIFA World Cups™ made a point of stressing his desire for continuity and "continuing [Smith's] good work", and his first squad was certainly near-identical to his predecessor's. Yet McLeish has also highlighted a desire to attack, and to gamble, that many believe sets him apart from the man he replaced.
Smith's success with Scotland had, after all, been built from the back; on a solid five-man defence that generally left the tireless Kenny Miller to forage alone up front. It was widely expected that McLeish would judge that 'if it ain't broke', but in fact he signalled a departure from this approach in his very first match in charge, against Georgia, when he ditched Smith's favoured formation in favour of providing Miller with a partner: Kris Boyd. The Rangers striker is oft-criticised for his negligible contribution outside the penalty area, but his goalscoring record - 44 in 64 appearances for the Ibrox club - tempted McLeish to take the risk. Needless to say, it paid off.
The goal that opened the scoring at a packed Hampden summed up Boyd's opportunistic talent, and even when Georgia stunned the home support by equalising through Shota Arveladze, McLeish proved ready and willing to stake Scotland's future on yet another calculated gamble. Replacing a tiring Boyd with the out-of-form Celtic striker Craig Beattie might not have been met with raptures at the time, but when Beattie raced through in the final minute to volley home a dramatic winner, the manager could reflect on another major decision on which he'd been proved absolutely right.
"I've learnt the spirit of this team is alive and kicking," was his reaction afterwards. "That was one of the greatest feelings of my life. With the change of management you always worry because the fans had such a great rapport and relationship with Walter Smith. But it was stunning coming out for the first time. I was really excited by the welcome from the fans when we came out of the tunnel."
Young Scott Brown, seen here tangling with Italy's Fabio Cannavaro (L) during the UEFA EURO 2008 qualifier in Bari's San Nicola Stadium on 28 March 2007, has been a revelation for both Hibernian and Scotland.(AFP)FILIPPO MONTEFORTEBrown announces his arrival
In Italy four days later, McLeish again banked on fortune favouring the brave, surprising everyone by leaving out a defensive midfielder, Christian Dailly, in favour of the attack-minded youngster Scott Brown. The Hibernian midfielder had made an impressive impact as a substitute against Georgia, and although questions were raised about his lack of experience and volatile temperament, he produced an outstanding performance against Cannavaro, Gattuso, Pirlo et al in a role just in advance of the equally impressive Barry Ferguson. Scotland were, indeed, extremely unfortunate to go down 2-0 to a Luca Toni double, and with the likes of Brown and youthful centre-half Stephen McManus confirming their arrival on the international scene, McLeish reflected that "the only thing wrong was the result".
Gambler McLeish sends Scots soaring
Scotland's Craig Beattie (R) celebrates with team-mate Kenny Miller after scoring the last-minute winner in the 2-1 qualifying victory over Georgia in UEFA EURO 2008 Group B at Hampden Park on 24 March 2007.(REUTERS) David Moir
(FIFA.com) 24 May 2007
This month witnessed a bit of political history in Scotland when the country voted in its first devolved nationalist government, edging itself ever closer to a divorce from the 300-year-old union with England.
Yet it wasn't only at the ballot box that a milestone was marked. May also witnessed Alex McLeish's side move up to 14th in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, breaking into the top 15 for the first time in the list's 14-year history, and capping a remarkable rise from the doldrums.
Scots are certainly enjoying the experience of peering down on the likes of Sweden and Mexico all the more because they well remember that it is not so long since they were gazing up at less illustrious football nations such as Guatemala and Burkina Faso. That was during Berti Vogts' ill-fated spell in charge, during which Scotland slumped to an all-time low of 88th as the German led them to 17 defeats, seven draws and just eight wins in his two-and-a-half-year tenure.
Such form left qualification for Germany 2006 out of the question, but now, at the halfway stage of their bid to escape from a truly horrific UEFA EURO 2008 preliminary section that features Italy, France and Ukraine, their hopes of making the journey to Austria and Switzerland are still very much alive. Few, certainly, would have expected Scotland to be level with France and Ukraine at the top of Group B at this point in proceedings, and while McLeish's side have played a game more than their rivals, the fixture list would appear to give the Scots real hope of fortifying their current position.
Alex McLeish has given the Scotland job the thumbs-up after being warmly received by both the country's players and supporters.(REUTERS)David MoirFaith repaid by Boyd and BeattieThere were those who feared a collapse when Walter Smith, who had led the team to that historic victory over France, was lured back to Rangers at a critical point in the qualifying campaign. McLeish, however, has impressed everyone thus far. When he was first unveiled, this veteran of three FIFA World Cups™ made a point of stressing his desire for continuity and "continuing [Smith's] good work", and his first squad was certainly near-identical to his predecessor's. Yet McLeish has also highlighted a desire to attack, and to gamble, that many believe sets him apart from the man he replaced.
Smith's success with Scotland had, after all, been built from the back; on a solid five-man defence that generally left the tireless Kenny Miller to forage alone up front. It was widely expected that McLeish would judge that 'if it ain't broke', but in fact he signalled a departure from this approach in his very first match in charge, against Georgia, when he ditched Smith's favoured formation in favour of providing Miller with a partner: Kris Boyd. The Rangers striker is oft-criticised for his negligible contribution outside the penalty area, but his goalscoring record - 44 in 64 appearances for the Ibrox club - tempted McLeish to take the risk. Needless to say, it paid off.
The goal that opened the scoring at a packed Hampden summed up Boyd's opportunistic talent, and even when Georgia stunned the home support by equalising through Shota Arveladze, McLeish proved ready and willing to stake Scotland's future on yet another calculated gamble. Replacing a tiring Boyd with the out-of-form Celtic striker Craig Beattie might not have been met with raptures at the time, but when Beattie raced through in the final minute to volley home a dramatic winner, the manager could reflect on another major decision on which he'd been proved absolutely right.
"I've learnt the spirit of this team is alive and kicking," was his reaction afterwards. "That was one of the greatest feelings of my life. With the change of management you always worry because the fans had such a great rapport and relationship with Walter Smith. But it was stunning coming out for the first time. I was really excited by the welcome from the fans when we came out of the tunnel."
Young Scott Brown, seen here tangling with Italy's Fabio Cannavaro (L) during the UEFA EURO 2008 qualifier in Bari's San Nicola Stadium on 28 March 2007, has been a revelation for both Hibernian and Scotland.(AFP)FILIPPO MONTEFORTEBrown announces his arrivalIn Italy four days later, McLeish again banked on fortune favouring the brave, surprising everyone by leaving out a defensive midfielder, Christian Dailly, in favour of the attack-minded youngster Scott Brown. The Hibernian midfielder had made an impressive impact as a substitute against Georgia, and although questions were raised about his lack of experience and volatile temperament, he produced an outstanding performance against Cannavaro, Gattuso, Pirlo et al in a role just in advance of the equally impressive Barry Ferguson. Scotland were, indeed, extremely unfortunate to go down 2-0 to a Luca Toni double, and with the likes of Brown and youthful centre-half Stephen McManus confirming their arrival on the international scene, McLeish reflected that "the only thing wrong was the result".
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