Scotland Soccer Coach Defends Team's Progress After Loss to Slovenia

Scotland manager Sebastien Pocognoli maintained that his team is progressing as planned, even after a disappointing 2-1 home loss to Slovenia. The defeat, which saw Scotland concede two second-half goals after leading at halftime, leaves the team with four points from four matches in the Nations League.

Pocognoli acknowledged the team's performance fell short of expectations, stating, "We were not at the level that we expected to be on the ball, but also off the ball." He added, "Today I don’t think we deserve to get more than what we got. Slovenia played a good game and we were not at the level."

Despite the setback, Pocognoli believes the recent training camp has provided a strong foundation for the future. "The players delivered a great camp," he said. "Maybe on the ranking aspect, especially with the game today, we are disappointed. But the job that we delivered with the staff, with the players and some moments during the four games was positive."

Scotland captain Andy Robertson expressed his frustration with the team's performance, calling it "not good enough." He felt the team was outfought by the Slovenians and did not replicate the positive aspects of their previous match. "We didn’t do the good things we did on Saturday," Robertson stated. "They caused us a lot of problems and we have to find the reasons why."

Robertson, who was presented with a ceremonial shirt before the match to mark his 101st cap, emphasized that personal milestones do not overshadow team performance. He noted that despite a long camp, the team looked less fresh and hungry than their opponents. "As Scotland, we might lack quality or make mistakes, but I don’t think people accept being outfought. I think that’s what happened tonight."

The result places Scotland three points behind Slovenia in their Nations League group, with matches against North Macedonia and Switzerland remaining. Pocognoli acknowledged the challenge of securing a pot-two seeding in the Euro 2028 draw, which requires finishing second in the group. "We need to get six points out of six and hope Slovenia lose some points," he said. "We are not in a comfortable situation to fight for this. We just have to try to take maximum points."