Scotland fans are excited about the emergence of Ben Gannon-Doak - but Matthew Lindsay believes it is the Old Guard of Che Adams, John McGinn and Scott McTominay who will spearhead the national team's bid to qualify for next summer's World Cup finals in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Recording an unexpected result against a major footballing nation to the delight of their disbelieving supporters and then promptly slipping up against one of the international game’s minnows has long been the Scottish way.
So as the first half in the national team’s World Cup qualifier against Belarus in the eerily quiet surroundings of the ZTE Arena in Zalaegerszeg in Hungary wore on last night, seasoned observers could have been forgiven for feeling slightly apprehensive.
It would be just like the boys in dark blue, who ground out a gutsy 0-0 draw with Denmark in Copenhagen in their Group C opener on Friday night, to undo all their hard work and damage their hopes of reaching the finals in Canada, Mexico and the United States next summer just three days after being applauded off the park in the Parken Stadium.
Having a raft of experiencing campaigners in their starting line-up, though, ultimately enabled Steve Clarke’s men to grind down and edge out opponents who set up with an ultra-defensive 5-3-2 formation and only sought to get forward on the counter attack.
There is, with very good reason, great excitement among the members of the Tartan Army, none of whom were inside the neutral venue where Scotland played the second game of their opening double header, about the potential of Ben Gannon-Doak.
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The winger, who moved from Liverpool to their Premier League rivals Bournemouth for a £25m fee during the summer, was drafted in to the side as Clarke made four changes. He more than justified his inclusion.
The former Celtic kid looked capable of engineering an opening in the hosts’ defence, of picking out a team mate in a dangerous position in the final third, of taking on and beating his marker, of lashing a shot into the net, whenever he received possession.
The Ayrshire lad was only used as a late substitute against Denmark because his manager was wary of asking too much of someone who underwent surgery on a thigh injury back in March, missed the final three months of the 2024/25 campaign and has only played 45 minutes of competitive football this term.
But he showed once again that he has much to offer his homeland in this World Cup qualifying campaign and beyond with his assured, occasionally inspired, personal display. It is incredible to think he is still just 19.
However, it was the old guard, not least Che Adams, John McGinn, Scott McTominay, who made the difference for Scotland in this awkward, occasionally jittery, but ultimately highly satisfactory outing. The trio, who have 180 caps between them, combined to break the deadlock and ease supporters’ nerves somewhat a few minutes before half-time.
Only, bizarrely enough, McGinn and McTominay have been on target more in a dark blue jersey out of the current squad. But the 29-year-old showed that he can create as well as convert in the second half when he floated a delightful chip to Billy Gilmour. The midfielder forced Zakhar Volkov to head into his own net.
The former Southampton forward, who netted a hat-trick in a friendly against Liechtenstein in the final friendly of last season, should have made it 3-0 late on. He rounded the keeper and was unfortunate not to find his intended target from an acute angle. But the near thing did nothing to detract from his assured showing.
Scotland have decent options up front for the first time in a long time. Lyndon Dykes, who came on last night, is injury-free once again and put an impressive shift in against Denmark. Elsewhere, George Hirst of Ipswich Town has shown his quality since pledging his allegiances to his adopted homeland. Hibernian fans, and followers of a few other teams, would like to see Kieron Bowie given a run.
On top of that, there is Tommy Conway at Middlesbrough and James Wilson at Hearts. There has been a dearth of outstanding strikers in this country for many years. All of a sudden, there are a few predators who can lead the line. But Adams is the man in the possession of the jersey and on the evidence of this outing he will not be easily shifted.
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The same goes for Aston Villa captain McGinn and Napoli midfielder McTominay. All three men were some way off their best in the Euro 2024 finals in Germany. Perhaps they have a point to prove. Maybe there are determined to make amends for that bitterly disappointing excursion by going to the World Cup and reaching the knockout rounds.
There is, despite Scotland banking four points from their opening two games and moving level with section leaders Denmark on points, an awful lot of football to be played before they can qualify. But with gnarled veterans like Che Adams, John McGinn and Scott McTominay involved they can go into their next two outings against Greece and Belarus at Hampden next month with confidence.
“It was a difficult pitch, there were no fans and they were hard to break down. We had to be patient, but we were and it paid off. It was a really good camp in the end. We missed the Scotland fans and that was for them.”
