Scotland analysis: Wonder goals end 27 years of glorious failure as Scots secure World Cup qualification
A 98th-minute halfway line effort from Kenny McLean sealed Scotland's World Cup dream, marking the end of a jittery Tuesday night fixture against Denmark in Glasgow.
For a moment, Scotland fell silent, as Steven Thompson's words rang through every TV screen in the country: “He’s done him… HE’S DONE HIM!”
You couldn’t write it.
It put an end to 90 minutes of nerves and frustration. A final scoreline read 4-2 as Scotland now find themselves preparing to head into unknown territory - World Cup football.
Here, Sports News Blitz’s Sam Condy breaks down all the key moments from Tuesday night's soap opera of a football match at Hampden Park.
Outrageous opener
It was a game of moments, a spectacle that was opened by an outrageous acrobatic bicycle kick from the Buckfast Baggio, the Tennents Totti if you will.
Ben Gannon-Doak found himself on the edge of the box mere minutes into the game, and a creative cutback from the youngster opened up the space to send a floated ball into the danger zone, where Scott ‘The Don’ McTominay was ready and waiting.
The Napoli superstar met the ball upside down, sending the ball to the back of the net in what will go down as perhaps the greatest goal Hampden Park has ever witnessed.
However, not long after disaster struck. Gannon-Doak, who had provided a mostly lone threat through the opening 20, found himself stretchered off, as the injury-stricken prospect now prepares himself for another spell on the sidelines.
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Momentum shift
And now, without the fearless winger, momentum quickly shifted, and Scotland fans got ready for yet another nervy 90 minutes at Hampden.
The boys in blue held on to their slim lead through the first forty-five, but the second half started much the same - it was only a matter of time for the Danes.
Then the worst came to fruition: a contentious penalty call from referee Szymon Marciniak saw Rasmus Hojlund level the scoreline in the 57th.
The next 30 minutes saw a back-and-forth jostle between the group leaders. Denmark's Rasmus Kristensen found himself heading to the tunnel following an admittedly soft second yellow for a push on John McGinn.
A poacher's effort from Heart of Midlothian mogul Lawrence Shankland gave the Tartan Army a lead for the second time.
Score even
Only seconds later, Manchester United’s Patrick Dorgu evened the score once again, and Denmark - who only needed a draw - were left with mere minutes on the clock to secure their tickets to North America.
It wouldn’t be a Scotland performance without drama, and what unfolded in the dying minutes of another mostly flat Scotland performance was simply unimaginable.
With 92 minutes on the clock, a Hail Mary ball into the box ricocheted to the feet of Celtic’s Kieran Tierney, who curled the ball through an abundance of bodies and past a full-stretch Kasper Schmeichel to give Scotland the lead well into stoppage time.
Minutes later, as Hampden Park held its breath, Kenny McLean found himself one-on-one with the last man, Steve Clarke beckoned the 33-year-old to the corner flag, but the Norwich midfielder had other ideas.
He spotted Schmiechel off his line, and chipped the Dane, ending 27 years of glorious failure as Scotland find themself en route to a World Cup Finals for the first time since 1998, as the final scoreline read 4-2.
Speaking after the final whistle, gaffer Steve Clarke couldn't contain his disbelief.
"When [Kenny] hit it, I thought 'what are you doing?!' but when I saw it in flight, I thought 'that's going to go in!'," Clarke said.
A sizeable chunk of the first team weren’t born the last time Scotland made an appearance at a World Cup.
Now they get to live out a dream a whole generation has never seen.
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