Scott McTominay insists Steve Clarke’s players are zoned in on becoming the most successful Scotland team in history.
The Napoli midfielder admits they have a point to prove in the two closing Nations League top tier games against Croatia and Poland over the next four days. And that is that they can mix it with the best the continent has to offer – and beat them.
McTominay has become a key man for the national team as they ended years in the major tournament wilderness to qualify for the last two European Championships. But the 27-year-old – who scored seven times in Euro 2024 qualifying and against Switzerland at the tournament itself – is hungry to take the next step and become the first Scots side to make it into the knockout rounds. Clarke and his players will turn their attention to World Cup qualifying after the Nations League double header. And McTominay insists there’s more to come from the current group.
He said: “Absolutely, I feel like we’re learning all the time as well. Getting to two major tournaments was amazing and everyone was happy about that. But the actual players in the dressing room were saying, ‘no we want to go on further – we want to push out the group and we want to keep progressing as a team.’ And really raising everyone’s profiles where we feel like we are capable of beating your pot one teams. And in my opinion, I feel like we have more than enough quality in our squad to do that.
“If you remain patient and have some faith in the squad then I’m sure that moments will come. There’s always a point to prove, there’s never a time where you can rest and think, ‘We’ve arrived here’.
“We’ve got to two major tournaments, there’s always a time to improve and for us that’s just the way that we need to be as a group and the way that we are. You can never settle for the things that are in the past. We want to move forward and we want to be the most successful Scottish team in history.”
Scotland have bounced back from a dismal showing at Euro 2024 with four encouraging displays in their first taste of the Nations League top tier. Last gasp defeats to Poland and Portugal were followed by another single goal loss in Croatia before a first point was plundered in the goalless draw with Portugal at Hampden last month.
A bare minimum there points are required from the last two games but more likely four or even all six to save our League A skins. But McTominay reckons there’s positives to be taken from the last four games.
He said: “In terms of the way that we’re playing, the slight change of shape obviously allows us a little bit more time with the ball and we can get higher percentage possession. For us, the only thing that’s missing is actually putting the ball in the back of the net and getting these crucial wins that we have had in previous camps.
“So it’s not a panic, it’s not a big disaster and stuff like that. We want to keep performing the way that we’ve been doing and the results will follow in my opinion.
“We’ve had some disappointing results, we all know that. But it’s about the way we’ve been playing. I think it’s been pretty good, it’s just the results have been a little shy.”
McTominay will take his cap count to 58 if he features in both games. Captain Andy Robertson will move level third in the all-time appearance list with 80 and goalkeeper Craig Gordon will go clear in fifth with his 78th. And those stats, insists McTominay, show just how much playing for the national team means to our big players.
He said: “I see and the characters that we have within our group, I think they are great people, professional people who come into Scotland every time to work and train as hard as they can. You look at some of the characters that we do have and it speaks volumes for the amount of caps that they have and the amount of professional years that they’ve played in the game. And for us, the manager and obviously for me playing with them, we’re so grateful to be a part of a great group, the only thing we’re missing at the minute is winning.”