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Pocognoli focus on Scotland tidy-up as Euros loom
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- Pocognoli focus on Scotland tidy-up as Euros loom
When Sebastien Pocognoli's disjointed Scotland trudged off at a two-thirds-full Hampden after being well beaten by Slovenia, the intrigue that came with the start of the new boss' extended maiden camp had turned to a sense of deflation.
A dominant display in a Nations League draw away to the Slovenians 10 days prior, plus another in a 2-0 victory at North Macedonia, had built optimism.
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A 3-0 defeat at home to Switzerland was written off after Jack Hendry's early red card was quickly followed by an opening goal for the 12th-ranked Fifa nation.
A second straight Hampden loss under the Belgian felt different, though. Pocognoli's side were "outfought" and simply "not good enough", said captain Andy Robertson.
Cut open defensively throughout by Slovenia, placed nine spots below Scotland in the world rankings, a sobering second-half showing led to questions about approach, systems and squad make-up.
However, heading into a double-header against North Macedonia and Switzerland this month, which will conclude the Scots' Nations League campaign, Pocognoli insists this is more of a clean-up job rather than one that requires any radical change.
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"We want to continue what we produced in the first camp," the 39-year-old said after naming his latest squad , which marks the returns of Scott McTominay, Che Adams and Kieran Tierney, while James Penrice has received a first call-up as reward for an impressive run of form with Rangers.
"There's no reason to change everything because I was happy with the camp. The main word is continuity [after the first camp].
"It's important to get some good results for sure. I was clear we need to find the right balance between changing things, experimenting and also being successful."
Pocognoli seeks mood-shifting result
In football's savage, reactive world, a deserved defeat at home to a team ranked outside the world's top 50 is bound to attract scrutiny.
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Given it was the final match of a four-game run before a six-week wait to attempt to put things right, that criticism only becomes prolonged.
Pocognoli shared the Tartan Army's disappointment, but after a few days the "real feeling" came after a debut camp packed with new faces and "strong decisions".
"When the disappointment was gone, the first feeling was positive," he said. "We did a lot of good things.
"But we need a good result to give something to the supporters and give confidence to the players that we are winning games - that's the main factor in qualifying for tournaments.
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"We want to just continue the good things we showed in Slovenia and North Macedonia in a very short period of time, to keep the fragment of these games and to try to clean some situations."
[BBC]
The 'big job' coming up
Despite the positivity Pocognoli is harbouring, he is not oblivious to the fact Scotland need to improve this month.
His side are third in Nations League Group B1 and require a minimum of four points to have any chance of finishing second and featuring in the promotion play-offs, while one point would stave off any threat of relegation.
Then comes qualification for Euro 2028, coined "the big job" by Pocognoli.
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Scotland will have to qualify for the tournament they are co-hosting along with England, Wales and the Republic of Ireland - but two places will be reserved at the finals should any of the host nations fail to qualify.
The qualifying draw takes place in Belfast on 6 December, with group fixtures starting in March next year.
Any time Pocognoli therefore has with his players is critical, and he hopes Napoli star McTominay, Torino striker Adams and Celtic's Tierney will help bring consistency to a squad that has had the refresh button hit on it since Steve Clarke's shock summer exit.
"If you accumulate their caps, we have some experience that will be useful for this camp," the head coach said of the returning trio.
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"All I want to do now is make the most of this time to know my squad as deeply as possible, to see the body language, the attitude of the players in some situations and to have most of the information to start the big job [of qualifying for the Euros]."
Penrice 'deserves' chance - but what about Miller?
After an autumn camp full of fresh faces, including Pocognoli and much of his backroom team, the Belgian will greet another with the call-up of Penrice.
The left-back has excelled since joining Rangers on loan from AEK Athens in August, particularly in recent weeks, with Derek McInnes occasionally utilising the versatile 27-year-old in midfield.
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"We have some missing players around the left side and, combined with his quality and what we are looking for on the pitch, it's a logical choice," Pocognoli said of Penrice's inclusion.
"He can be very useful for the system we want to play, and I think he deserves it."
There was more disappointment for Lennon Miller, though. Having returned to the squad following his World Cup exclusion, the Udinese midfielder has been dropped again.
Despite Pocognoli playing down the decision to leave out the 20-year-old as "not a big topic", his international career remains a curious case.
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After delivering a standout performance in his only start for Scotland, a 4-0 victory in Liechtenstein in June 2025, Miller was expected to follow an upward trajectory but has since played just three minutes for the national side.
Pocognoli suggests Miller is a victim of playing in the area of the team's "most competitive" field and wants to deploy him in a more advanced midfield role.
"We've offered him the opportunity to play for the Under-21s, maybe in the position and shape from the first team," the Scotland boss revealed. "For Udinese he plays as a number six. I want to see him higher on the pitch.
"Like with Findlay [Curtis], if he's doing well with the Under-21s, for us it's like a massive scouting report for the future because we can see him in his best position in the shape we want to see."
