""Was it because we've got that mindset where a point might do, so it's cautious?" Dodds wondered. "Maybe the cautious approach came from what we needed out of the game, but then we realised at the end, we're desperate and we nearly did it, but it didn't really matter in the end, did it? "It's all about energy and belief. That's when we're at our best. It's about having a go.""
"McFadden thought "lousy defending" and "a nervousness" from their previous recent meetings with Greece contributed to Saturday's eventful defeat. "I thought our press was really poor," he said. "They found it far too easy to play in the areas they wanted to play and we didn't stop them. "The distances were too big between defence and midfield and attack, so the press was never going to work, but then the second half started much better, much more aggressive, we're getting players forward."
Scotland lost 3-2 in Greece despite needing only a draw to maintain automatic World Cup qualification hopes. Belarus' surprise 2-2 draw in Copenhagen means Scotland will finish top of Group C if they beat Denmark at Hampden on Tuesday 18 November. Former strikers Billy Dodds and James McFadden attributed the poor start to a cautious mindset, nervousness, lousy defending and a weak press. Dodds emphasised energy, belief and willingness to have a go, while McFadden highlighted excessive distances between defence, midfield and attack and noted a more aggressive second-half approach.
Read at www.bbc.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]