HeadlinesBriefing favicon HeadlinesBriefing.com

Pocognoli's Hampden debut ends in 3-0 loss

BBC Sport Football •
×

Scotland head coach Sebastien Pocognoli hopes to "remember this night differently later on" after his Hampden debut ended in a deflating Nations League defeat by Switzerland. Off the back of a goalless draw in Ljubljana in his first game as Scotland boss, Pocognoli's side slumped to a 3-0 loss in Glasgow's southside on Tuesday.

Scotland are now without a clean sheet in eight home matches and have failed to score in six of their nine games this year. Pocognoli promised a more attacking approach, but those ideals were undermined by Jack Hendry's 11th-minute red card. Ricardo Rodriguez rifled the subsequent free-kick past Angus Gunn, with Nico Elvedi and Zeki Amdouni adding to the scoreline in the second half.

"It's not easy against a good team to be with 10 men," said Pocognoli. "We had an unlucky red card, punished with the free-kick, that's the worst scenario. The guys did the best they could and hopefully we will remember this night differently later on." Former Scotland defender Willie Miller said: "He was sounding pretty depressed there, Pocognoli. We all are."

Captain Andy Robertson admitted he would have preferred a penalty for Hendry's challenge. "Football is about split second decisions, Jack has tried to nick the ball," he said. Robertson, set to win his 100th cap in Skopje, echoed Pocognoli's desire to stay positive: "What we've planned for the last three days went completely out the window. Ultimately I don't think we'll take too much from this game."