World cup 2026

[southcoastpunter]

VAR Saves  Scotland - At least For the time being!!

[Blackpool Rock]

Suicidal defending

Two absolute gifts, completely unnecessary.

The VAR Gods are in their favour and ruled the 2nd out, if they don't qualify for the knockout rounds they can't complain about bad luck or not getting decisions this time 

[Blackpool Rock]

VAR Saves  Scotland - At least For the time being!!

Yeah another 65 minutes to fuck it up 

[Punterperson1971]

Anyone tried to scan the QR code on the tv for 3 d experience
Here it is
Some of the players looked like they were dancing on the touch line

Hidden Image/Members Only

[timsussex]

That was  a terrible VAR decision the Scotch player kicked the Brazillian  and could have had a red card for a poor rugby tackle

[bigden40]

That was  a terrible VAR decision the Scotch player kicked the Brazillian  and could have had a red card for a poor rugby tackle

Behave. It was a foul but we got a break that it went to VAR.

Plenty possession in the first half but did nothing with it.  Seems like every pass received was by a player who was static with his back to goal, way too easy to defend. 

Would have been happy to get in at the break just 1 down.

[timsussex]

Behave. It was a foul but we got a break that it went to VAR.
...

Well all the independents (ie not Scotch) seem to agree it wasnt a foul and the tame ref described them as "fortunate" in that perhaps the VAR decided that as Vinicus hadnt touched the ball he wasnt in control when HE WAS kicked

[timsussex]

2 down and Scotland still have a 63% chance of going through
3 down and it drops to 43%
4 down and its only 27%

[bigden40]

Smh

Hidden Image/Members Only

[Blackpool Rock]

2 down and Scotland still have a 63% chance of going through
3 down and it drops to 43%
4 down and its only 27%

They just put up the stats and it was almost 50/50 if Scotland lost by 3 goals

Looking at the table they have dropped to 6th and there are 6 teams below them left to play who I believe will all leapfrog Scotland if they can get a win in their 3rd game, Cape Verde and Belgium do it with a draw.

There are 4 teams still to play above them who could drop below Scotland if they lose heavily by 2 or more goals

What this doesn't factor in however is some of these teams getting results may mean they perhaps don't finish 3rd in their group but 2nd and another team with a worse record replace them who may then be below Scotland 

[timsussex]

They just put up the stats and it was almost 50/50 if Scotland lost by 3 goals

Looking at the table they have dropped to 6th and there are 6 teams below them left to play who I believe will all leapfrog Scotland if they can get a win in their 3rd game, Cape Verde and Belgium do it with a draw.

There are 4 teams still to play above them who could drop below Scotland if they lose heavily by 2 or more goals

What this doesn't factor in however is some of these teams getting results may mean they perhaps don't finish 3rd in their group but 2nd and another team with a worse record replace them who may then be below Scotland 

The stats I quoted were those given by BBC in game commentator - back in the studio they had a different set I think one was before the tournament and one was after the second round of games
Several of the 3rd placed teams below Scotland have the bottom teams to play in their final match
Because of the way positions are calculated (with head to head trumping goals) some of the games are dead rubbers for one or both sides
A win for Czech republic v Mexico  would mean they leapfrog Scotland but whatever the result (even a 10 -nil loss) Mexico will still top the group. Similarly Ecuador v Germany
Why shouldnt Mexico and Germany put out 2nd XIs ?

[Steve2]

3-0 Brazil. Maybe the Jocks are going home

[timsussex]

Steve Clarke seems sure Scotland are out

External Link/Members Only


so (with apologies to Skinner Baddiel and the lightning Seeds lets have a chorus of
They're coming home
They'te coming home
Scotlands coming home

[timsussex]

good news for Scotland Mexico thrashed 3rd placed Croatia
Unfortunately

South Africa (who move from 4th to second) beat Sth Korea so Scotland now 7th - with only 8 to qualify and surely Belgium (currently 9th) cant play as badly again 

[scouting]

good news for Scotland Mexico thrashed 3rd placed Croatia
Unfortunately

South Africa (who move from 4th to second) beat Sth Korea so Scotland now 7th - with only 8 to qualify and surely Belgium (currently 9th) cant play as badly again

Mexico beat Czech Republic 3-0

[Blackpool Rock]

Mexico beat Czech Republic 3-0

Yeah and strangely South Africa beat South Korea dragging Korea down from 2nd place to 3rd but above Scotland on Goal difference, as I posted above some teams not currently sitting in 3rd place may pop up in that spot

Scotland's problem (apart from not getting enough points) is that their GD is shite at -3 the worst in the current 3rd place table equal with Senegal but I believe after GD if it's tied it goes on goals scored 
Scotland only scored 1, Belgium and Congo have also only scored 1 but they still have a game to play, Ecuador haven't scored any but again have a game to play

[Blackpool Rock]

3-0 Brazil. Maybe the Jocks are going home

Just checked and Opta now give Scotland a 42% chance of qualifying but if they do as 3rd place they are likely to face either Mexico; Germany or France, seriously boys just give it up now     

[bigden40]

Yeah and strangely South Africa beat South Korea dragging Korea down from 2nd place to 3rd but above Scotland on Goal difference, as I posted above some teams not currently sitting in 3rd place may pop up in that spot

Scotland's problem (apart from not getting enough points) is that their GD is shite at -3 the worst in the current 3rd place table equal with Senegal but I believe after GD if it's tied it goes on goals scored 
Scotland only scored 1, Belgium and Congo have also only scored 1 but they still have a game to play, Ecuador haven't scored any but again have a game to play

I don’t see Belgium finishing 3rd, they’ll beat New Zealand and finish no worse than 2nd.  Egypt will hopefully beat Iran leaving them below us. 

Groups D, E, G, H, I, J, K 3rd place teams could all conceivably finish below Scotland, we need 4 from these 7.  A & B are already above and F (we’d need Japan to thump Sweden) & L (Ghana would need to beat Croatia by more than 2) are extremely unlikely to finish below.

Most likely - Group E (Ecuador/Curacao), Group G (Iran), Group H (Cape Verde), Group I (Senegal/Iraq)

Over and above that we’d be hoping for Uzbekistan to not lose to DR Congo in Group K, Austria to beat Algeria in Group J and Australia to beat Paraguay by 2 in Group D.

[mr.bluesky]

Just checked and Opta now give Scotland a 42% chance of qualifying but if they do as 3rd place they are likely to face either Mexico; Germany or France, seriously boys just give it up now     

Scotland - the gift that keeps on giving 

[Blackpool Rock]

Scotland - the gift that keeps on giving 

[Blackpool Rock]

I don’t see Belgium finishing 3rd, they’ll beat New Zealand and finish no worse than 2nd.  Egypt will hopefully beat Iran leaving them below us. 

Groups D, E, G, H, I, J, K 3rd place teams could all conceivably finish below Scotland, we need 4 from these 7.  A & B are already above and F (we’d need Japan to thump Sweden) & L (Ghana would need to beat Croatia by more than 2) are extremely unlikely to finish below.

Most likely - Group E (Ecuador/Curacao), Group G (Iran), Group H (Cape Verde), Group I (Senegal/Iraq)

Over and above that we’d be hoping for Uzbekistan to not lose to DR Congo in Group K, Austria to beat Algeria in Group J and Australia to beat Paraguay by 2 in Group D.

Something was quoted earlier about one of the later games on Sunday that in group J Austria and Algeria are both on 3 points but play each other, a draw would see both teams qualify.

I've just taken a look and on Friday group D Paraguay and Australia are both on 3 points and also play each other, again a draw would see both teams qualify

So the question is exactly how hard will any of these teams actually try 
Obviously if there's any sort of discussion about a draw being a good result for both sides then it's match fixing but might there just be some sort of "Understanding" in these games 
Well the bookies seem to think so as the odds for a draw are far lower than normal on Betfair for both games 

There are also lower than normal odds but not quite so extreme for the Egypt Vs Iran game who sit 1st and 2nd but again a draw would see both sides qualify, some potential regional "Friendship" between these too 

[scouting]

Something was quoted earlier about one of the later games on Sunday that in group J Austria and Algeria are both on 3 points but play each other, a draw would see both teams qualify.

I've just taken a look and on Friday group D Paraguay and Australia are both on 3 points and also play each other, again a draw would see both teams qualify

So the question is exactly how hard will any of these teams actually try 
Obviously if there's any sort of discussion about a draw being a good result for both sides then it's match fixing but might there just be some sort of "Understanding" in these games 
Well the bookies seem to think so as the odds for a draw are far lower than normal on Betfair for both games 

There are also lower than normal odds but not quite so extreme for the Egypt Vs Iran game who sit 1st and 2nd but again a draw would see both sides qualify, some potential regional "Friendship" between these too 

There was the infamous match at the 1982 world cup between West Germany and Austria. Germany won 1-0 but both went through on goal difference. It was widely criticised as being a fix as it was such a boring match where neither side seemed to make any effort to score.

[bigden40]

Something was quoted earlier about one of the later games on Sunday that in group J Austria and Algeria are both on 3 points but play each other, a draw would see both teams qualify.

I've just taken a look and on Friday group D Paraguay and Australia are both on 3 points and also play each other, again a draw would see both teams qualify

So the question is exactly how hard will any of these teams actually try 
Obviously if there's any sort of discussion about a draw being a good result for both sides then it's match fixing but might there just be some sort of "Understanding" in these games 
Well the bookies seem to think so as the odds for a draw are far lower than normal on Betfair for both games 

There are also lower than normal odds but not quite so extreme for the Egypt Vs Iran game who sit 1st and 2nd but again a draw would see both sides qualify, some potential regional "Friendship" between these too 

The differences in the draw based on finishing position should be enough incentive for teams to try. Finishing 3rd means you’re Jo against a group winner, teams will want to avoid that. 

Algeria v Austria will be interesting given the memory of the “disgrace of Gijon”

A draw between Egypt and Iran could see Belgium top the group, so no incentive for Egypt there.  They’re not close to the Iranians btw, they’re more allied with Saudi/UAE.

[TomTank]

Algeria fixing a result with Austria     

[Blackpool Rock]

There was the infamous match at the 1982 world cup between West Germany and Austria. Germany won 1-0 but both went through on goal difference. It was widely criticised as being a fix as it was such a boring match where neither side seemed to make any effort to score.

There was another game about 20 years ago, can't remember if it was WC or Euros but 2 of the Scandinavian teams had to play each other and there was a weird scenario that a specific 2-2 draw would see them both go through.

Edit - I'm guessing it was this game between Denmark and Sweden in Euro 2004, apparently with the Scando teams if they go our then their fans start rooting for other Scando teams, perhaps if Scotland go out then their fans will start cheering for England then   

I remember this 2-2 scenario being talked about a couple of days before the game and was going to have a bet on it, a 2-2 draw at the time would normally have been about 14/1 but it was backed down to about 5/1

OK so it does work both ways to an extent however i'd say from speaking to people that around 50% of the people i've talked to have said they want Scotland to qualify 

External Link/Members Only

External Link/Members Only

[ulstersubbie]

Scotland should just go home now, Clarke and the team made to apologize to the travelling fans for another monumental f**k up of a tournament. We simply can't compete at this level, the likes of McKenna up against Vinicius jnr illustrates the massive gulf in quality. I've said it before, unless there is a radical restructuring of Scottish football from top to bottom and different ideas being brought to the table we will never achieve anything.

[Fuzzyduck]

Scotland should just go home now, Clarke and the team made to apologize to the travelling fans for another monumental f**k up of a tournament. We simply can't compete at this level, the likes of McKenna up against Vinicius jnr illustrates the massive gulf in quality. I've said it before, unless there is a radical restructuring of Scottish football from top to bottom and different ideas being brought to the table we will never achieve anything.

I don't have any stake in the game but I would lay it on Clarke rather than the players. After the game he said something like "we gave them the game they wanted". Whose fault was that, mate? Scotland just don't have the quality or experience to play out the back in the way they tried to. It looked like they were trying not to lose by too many. I'd rather go out in a blaze of glory having a go at Brazil rather than this kind of ending. If I were a Scotland fan, the thing I'd be worried about is that Clarke has extended his contract through to 2030.

[ulstersubbie]

If I were a Scotland fan, the thing I'd be worried about is that Clarke has extended his contract through to 2030.

A lot of Scotland fans wanted him gone after the last Euro's never mind the World Cup. Personally I have nothing against Clarke as a man but he's been found wanting when it comes to tournament football, the step up a level has been too much for him. Giving him an extended contract was the wrong thing to do but that's the SFA for you.

[chuck_88]

Scotland should stick to what we are good at, Alcohol and Heroin.

An absolute shambles of a tournament, we are the worst team there.

If it wasn't for the WC being increased to 48 teams we would be nowhere near it.

[mills_and_bhuna]

Looks like I'm going to have to fish out my Andy Murray inspired ABE t-shirt for the rest of the tournament.........

[Thephoenix]

Scotland should just go home now, Clarke and the team made to apologize to the travelling fans for another monumental f**k up of a tournament. We simply can't compete at this level, the likes of McKenna up against Vinicius jnr illustrates the massive gulf in quality. I've said it before, unless there is a radical restructuring of Scottish football from top to bottom and different ideas being brought to the table we will never achieve anything.

Commiserations!
It was embarrassing.

[Blackpool Rock]

I don't have any stake in the game but I would lay it on Clarke rather than the players. After the game he said something like "we gave them the game they wanted". Whose fault was that, mate? Scotland just don't have the quality or experience to play out the back in the way they tried to. It looked like they were trying not to lose by too many. I'd rather go out in a blaze of glory having a go at Brazil rather than this kind of ending. If I were a Scotland fan, the thing I'd be worried about is that Clarke has extended his contract through to 2030.

But i'm sure before the game when the team was announced he / they were being praised for having what looked like an attacking line up 

If they'd set up defensively and got beaten 3-0 then everyone would have been saying it was down to the lack of ambition and how did they expect to be able to park the camper van  against Brazil 

Individual defensive mistakes / fuck up's are what did for them

[Blackpool Rock]

A lot of Scotland fans wanted him gone after the last Euro's never mind the World Cup. Personally I have nothing against Clarke as a man but he's been found wanting when it comes to tournament football, the step up a level has been too much for him. Giving him an extended contract was the wrong thing to do but that's the SFA for you.

Confirmation that SFA stands for Sweet Fuck All 

[Blackpool Rock]

Scotland should stick to what we are good at, Alcohol and Heroin.

An absolute shambles of a tournament, we are the worst team there.

If it wasn't for the WC being increased to 48 teams we would be nowhere near it.

PMSL 
Best quote on here in years 

[mr.bluesky]

Scotland should stick to what we are good at, Alcohol and Heroin.

An absolute shambles of a tournament, we are the worst team there.

If it wasn't for the WC being increased to 48 teams we would be nowhere near it.

To be fair chuck you are pretty good at curling 
If there was a World cup for it Scotland would be slugging it out with Canada

[mr.bluesky]

Looks like I'm going to have to fish out my Andy Murray inspired ABE t-shirt for the rest of the tournament.........

If the Ghana performance is anything to go by then we won't be out there for much longer. Tell the pilot to keep the engines running

[mills_and_bhuna]

If the Ghana performance is anything to go by then we won't be out there for much longer. Tell the pilot to keep the engines running

This kind of attitude is why I love to see England out.
England just expects their team to rock up and blow away the opposition without breaking a sweat with flowing, one touch football.
Ghana are no mugs and England aren't the first and won't be the last to find out that a well set up group of very good athletes with decent skill levels and a good coach can cause problems.
Spain found out against Cabo Verde .
England will beat Panama and top the group and I'd be surprised if they didn't reach the quarter -finals at least.
You will find out how good they are and how good a coach Tuchel is when they come up against a big dog.
We'll see if he is as anti-Southgate as they claim.
Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France, Germany, Netherlands .
These teams are the yardstick for a country with England's resources.

[john122350]

Hidden Image/Members Only

Hidden Image/Members Only

Hidden Image/Members Only

Hidden Image/Members Only

Hidden Image/Members Only

Hidden Image/Members Only

[myothernameis]

Norway Rowing, brilliant

External Link/Members Only

External Link/Members Only

[bigden40]

But i'm sure before the game when the team was announced he / they were being praised for having what looked like an attacking line up 

If they'd set up defensively and got beaten 3-0 then everyone would have been saying it was down to the lack of ambition and how did they expect to be able to park the camper van  against Brazil 

Individual defensive mistakes / fuck up's are what did for them

You know what, it did LOOK LIKE an attacking lineup. 

Tactics on the day were off though, never got any go forward despite a ton of possession.  I moaned during the match that every Scotland player seemed to receive the ball with his back to goal and static. 

Tierney for Robertson in the second half seemed to create a few chances.

We can be better than that, but you can’t beat a team like a Brazil if you’re not asking questions of them. Just like we didn’t with a Morocco either. 

[ulstersubbie]

Scotland should stick to what we are good at, Alcohol and Heroin.

Quality mate!   

[ulstersubbie]

Confirmation that SFA stands for Sweet Fuck All 

I concur with that statement.   

[mr.bluesky]

How the fuck has that Germany goal been allowed to stand. The Ecuador player was almost decapitated  by the high boot

[Blackpool Rock]

How the fuck has that Germany goal been allowed to stand. The Ecuador player was almost decapitated  by the high boot

Was just about to post the same, fuck knows 

[myothernameis]

How the fuck has that Germany goal been allowed to stand. The Ecuador player was almost decapitated  by the high boot

Now 1-1

[Davey Dykes]

I think a point worth mentioning is that the refereeing so far has been excellent in the main part.

Very little VAR and where there is it tends to be a quick decision. They've let the games flow from what I've watched and deserve credit for that. This pish of watching reruns of an incident and taking about 5 minutes to make a call needs to end and it needs to end now.

As I type Ecuador have leveled with Germany and looking like a cracker in the making.

[Blackpool Rock]

So Germany guaranteed of winning their group but commendably decide to field a strong starting 11, I think there were 2 changes which may have been affected by injuries anyway.

Despite this they aren't exactly putting Ecuador to the sword and look quite stale 

[Blackpool Rock]

I think a point worth mentioning is that the refereeing so far has been excellent in the main part.

Very little VAR and where there is it tends to be a quick decision. They've let the games flow from what I've watched and deserve credit for that. This pish of watching reruns of an incident and taking about 5 minutes to make a call needs to end and it needs to end now.

As I type Ecuador have leveled with Germany and looking like a cracker in the making.

Also we aren't typically seeing a stupid amount of added time, think the water break is officially 3 minutes but most games seem to have 4 minutes added on.

Not sure if that's a conscious decision not to add too much or whether the new rules to stop players wasting time is having a positive effect, IMO it does seem to have improved things 

[Blackpool Rock]

So Germany guaranteed of winning their group but commendably decide to field a strong starting 11, I think there were 2 changes which may have been affected by injuries anyway.

Despite this they aren't exactly putting Ecuador to the sword and look quite stale 

And Ecuador get a 2nd 

[RedKettle]

Ecuador ahead!!  Fantastic effort.