Is This the Best Scottish National Team of All Time?

The Tartan Army are on the brink of a second successive European Championship appearance, following years of heartache and oh-so-nearly qualifying campaigns. Is this the best Scottish team of all time?

It is nigh-unfathomable that Scotland – a nation who just recently had to endure 23 painstaking years of watching tournaments from afar – are now on the verge of qualifying for their second Euros in a row.

It is made all the more impressive by the way in which they have gone about it. Five wins from as many games sees them sitting pretty at the top of Group A, having scored 12 goals and conceding just once.

Spain, who were a semi-finalist in Scotland’s most recent tournament appearance at Euro 2020, trail them by six points. A Norway side boasting Martin Odegaard and Erling Haaland are also struggling to stay abreast with the Scots.

And so, Steve Clarke’s Scotland overachievers travel to the Estadio La Cartuja in Seville, knowing they still have plenty of room to breathe in their qualifying group.

What do Scotland Need to Qualify For Euro 2024 Tonight?

Travelling Tartan-clad fans have already descended on southern Spain, with footage of a few sun-dried Scots uneasy on their feet making their way through the cobbled streets of Seville’s Jewish quarter.

As they make their way to the northern sector of the city this evening, a party mood is to be expected, and is undoubtedly warranted.

Scotland fans in Seville tonight 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿@ScotlandNT pic.twitter.com/VDRiyeGzXd

— Fitba Culture 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@fitbaculture) October 11, 2023

It is one of those rare occasions where all the pressure rests on the perceived favourites, with Spain needing all three points to keep their hopes of automatic qualification alive.

Scotland just need a solitary point on Thursday, and they will have qualified for Euro 2024. Given they swept aside the Spanish while keeping a clean sheet back in March, that result should inspire a wave of confidence.

If Norway also fail to beat Cyprus tonight, Scotland will secure qualification regardless of what transpires in Spain.

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Is This the Best Scottish Team of All Time?

Only time will tell whether this team will be remembered in same bracket as the ‘golden era’ of the Scottish national team.

Between 1974 and 1998, Scotland qualified for six out of seven World Cups, along with two of their three total Euros appearances. 15 years of Kenny Dalglish – their most capped player and the only man to reach 100 appearances – will take a lot to surpass.

King Kenny took up the mantle of Scotland’s chief goalscorer almost as soon as Denis Law pulled the curtain down on his career.

Thursday night’s meeting will no doubt ignite a surge of nostalgia for those old enough to remember the sun-drenched 1982 World Cup in Spain. The likes of Graeme Souness, John Wark and John Robertson very nearly navigated the Scots through the group stage alongside Brazil, only for the Soviet Union to progress on goal difference.

Those are the lofty heights this current cohort can only hope to emulate, but they are well on their way to another tournament, and the experience of another Euros will only gel this group together even further.

They will have to make do without Kieran Tierney, whose own Spanish escapade in Sociedad was cut short after picking up a hamstring injury. His rambunctious run through a Glasgow downpour back in March proved an iconic moment in Scotland’s qualifying campaign, and confirmed the 2-0 win over Spain last time out.

The man who converted that goal, Scott McTominany, is making quite a habit out of scoring crucial goals.

📈 Matchday 7 in the #EURO2024 qualifiers is here so time for a reminder that Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku leads the way in the goalscoring charts.

Scotland’s (unlikely?) goal machine Scott McTominay has the chance to close the gap when they take on Spain. pic.twitter.com/EByMaZv5ah

— FotMob (@FotMob) October 12, 2023

His brace against Brentford for Manchester United last time out spared the club another embarrassing mishap, but his impact for his national side can not be downplayed. Alongside United’s Rasmus Højlund, he sits joint-second in the Euro qualifying goalscoring charts with six goals.

Loyal generals in captain Andrew Robertson – their most capped active player – as well as midfield trio John McGinn, Callum McGregor and Stuart Armstrong have all been integral to getting Scotland to where they are now.

It befalls to the next generation of players such as Aaron Hickey, Billy Gilmour, Lewis Ferguson – all of whom play at the very highest level – to lift Scotland into a new era.

Steve Clarke will be remembered fondly in generations to come as the man who brought the feel-good factor back to the national team. He has the highest win percentage of any manager in their history, which suggests that this team may well be the greatest they’ve ever had.

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