Scotland ready to stop their opening day stumbles, Clarke says

Scotland's coach Steve Clarke is determined for his team to break their pattern of poor opening performances as they prepare for their first World Cup in almost three decades.

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Obviously we know the last two tournaments haven't gone the way that we wanted them to go. We have another chance, and that's credit to the players that they keep qualifying for these major tournaments. It's great to be here, but we also want to do something special.

Clarke expressed an upbeat outlook ahead of Saturday's match against Haiti in Boston, emphasizing a desire to enjoy the tournament after struggling in recent Euros. Scotland drew twice and lost four matches across their last two European Championship appearances. Their Euro 2024 campaign began with a heavy 5-1 defeat to hosts Germany, and a 2-0 loss to the Czech Republic in their previous major tournament appearance in 1998 left them with too much ground to make up.

"Obviously we know the last two tournaments haven't gone the way that we wanted them to go," Clarke said. "We have another chance, and that's credit to the players that they keep qualifying for these major tournaments. It's great to be here, but we also want to do something special."

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Don't get humped

When asked about lessons learned from previous opening match stumbles, Clarke humorously responded to reporters by saying, "Don't get humped," referring to the Germany defeat. Scotland faces Morocco and Brazil in their other Group C games, but Clarke stressed the importance of respecting Haiti, currently ranked 83rd by FIFA, while Scotland is 41st. He acknowledged that Haiti, with their sole previous World Cup appearance in 1974, would also be highly motivated.

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They are also a proud nation. They're going to be here 100 percent committed the same as we are, and we know that they have qualities that can cause us problems on the pitch.

Captain Andy Robertson echoed Clarke's sentiment, expressing a strong desire to avoid the regrets of past tournaments, particularly the disappointing performance in Germany. "I think it's the most quality we've had in a Scotland squad for a long time," Robertson stated. Midfield playmaker Scott McTominay is available after an upset stomach, but central defender Scott McKenna is out with a calf injury.

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I think it's the most quality we've had in a Scotland squad for a long time.