Breaking Down the Loss

As promised, here’s a bit deeper of a look at today’s 3-1 loss to the Czech Republic. There are some bright points, more in fact than a look at the scoreline might suggest, but a 3-1 loss is never a net positive, and so its time to break down what went wrong, and right, in George Burley’s first Scotland defeat.

Both teams came in with essentially a 4-5-1, the lone striker for Scotland being Kenny Miller, coming off of his good performance in the last match against Croatia. For the Czechs, the target man was Jan Koller. But it was another man, one familiar to Scottish fans, that owned the day for the Republic. Libor Sionko has never been a hugely productive scorer from the midfield, and came into this match with four goals from 28 previous caps, but the former Rangers man was absolutely on fire today. He scored a brace, first opening the scoring at the hour mark, then finishing off the Scots right before the death. His second goal in particular was a beauty, even if it came on the end of a defensive error.

Let’s look at the good news. The first bit, and the one that had me smiling through the first half, was that we might have found ourselves a new winger. James Morrison had a very promising match in his first cap for Scotland. He played 68 minutes, and during that time, he showed creativity, pace, and an absolute tenacity for every ball. On a week when a number of established Scotland regulars came up mysteriously lame, in my mind thinking a friendly below them, it was fantastic to see a Scot with such desire to earn his spot. He showed it from the opening whistle, with a great run down the flank in the first minute, and still had that fire in his eyes well into the second half. Just before Sionko’s first goal, Morrison had a great chance on goal from a terrific Kenny Miller pass, and with all respect to the new man in blue, I have to say a more experienced player would have had a better shot at it. He wasn’t the best in his finishing, but that was my only complaint, and I think he may well be Scotland’s man of the match.

Speaking of debutants, I was absolutely thrilled to see David Clarkson score in his first Scotland appearance. What a year for the Motherwell man. Not six months ago, he was standing on the pitch as his captain and uncle, Phil O’Donnell, collapsed to the ground, soon to tragically die in one of the great recent losses for the Scottish football family. In that game, before the O’Donnell’s tragic death, he scored what might have otherwise been the goal of the season in the SPL, a goal he quite honestly says he doesn’t even remember. Since then, Clarkson has been a huge part of Motherwell’s successful run to remain third place in the SPL, and secure European play next season. His brilliant turn-and-shoot today was one of the prettier recent Scotland goals, and if I had to pick someone on the squad that I wanted to get it, it would have been David.

So, we had two debutants that impressed, which is great news for World Cup qualifying. But, you don’t lose 3-1 without some mistakes. The first, I have to say, was tactical. Kenny Miller spent the entire first half all alone in front, even more so than would be expected from a man in a lone striker role. Of the five midfielders, only young Morrison was making any attempt to assist Kenny in the opposing box, and I would have liked to see a formation with a bit more bite to it. The 4-1-4-1 that Scotland has adopted, with Paul Hartley sticking in between the defense and true midfield, can be a highly effective defensive one, but leaves little for the attack. This is a team that I feel can play in a pure 4-4-2, or at least a 4-3-2-1 pyramid that would give poor Kenny just a bit of help.

Miller himself was inconsistent. He was at his best today when he worked as more of a setup man, similar to the way Wayne Rooney was used in the recent England game. His passes were very good, especially the fantastic feed to Morrison I mentioned earlier. He finish was disappointing, though, and his old tendency to boot at least one great chance up into the cheap seats returned. That’s why I’ve never been the biggest fan, but he wasn’t terrible tonight.

The defense was a mixed bag. Caldwell and McManus were quite good for the most part. They were particular adept at handling Koller, who, after a few early headed attempts, was kept pretty quiet. They were outmatched by Sionko, though, especially on his second goal. Hartley had his moments in the defensive midfielder position, but his botched header set up that last goal, and it wasn’t his only poor clearance. A number of weak clears to the center were made, and not only by Hartley. Kevin McNaughton had a pretty anonymous game, mostly appearing when he picked up an injury. He hurt his ankle twice in the second half, and was eventually removed just before the end to allow Christophe Berra a mostly honorary first cap.

Considering that he allowed in three goals, Craig Gordon was still in good form, and the scoreline is most harsh on him. Two of the goals were really down to defenders much more than to him, and he saved a one-on-one with Vaclav Sverkos midway through the second half that one has to think Jan Koller would have put away. He won’t look back on this one fondly, but I don’t blame him for this loss.

All in all, of course it was disappointing, but the future looks a bit brighter in the big picture than it did this morning. My biggest position of worry (as readers well know) is winger, and James Morrison is going to be a great option if he keeps up. He’ll be in the Premier League next season, and should only improve. Clarkson had an excellent goal, and is another great option to have, but one can’t imagine him as a starting forward anytime soon, even if Burley goes to a two-striker formation. The gaping hole at left back is still very much in the air. Scotland veteran Gary Naysmith filled in there, but the fact is that he is not a long term solution. As predicted, we missed Alan Hutton on the right, where McNaughton is a poor substitute. There is still a long way to go before September, when we start our run to the World Cup, but there is reason for hope, even in defeat. Alba Gu Brath.

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