Steve Clarke expressed his frustration over Scotland’s narrow 1-0 defeat to Morocco, particularly regarding the lack of penalty calls. Both John McGinn and Scott McTominay made strong appeals for penalties during the match, with McGinn later asserting that a Moroccan defender, Neil El Aynaoui, “Everyone when I did my television interviews was talking about the Scott McTominay one,”
While Clarke refrained from criticizing the referees outright, he indicated that the decisions seemed questionable, mentioning that Morocco’s Issa Diop might have warranted a red card early on. The only goal of the match came just 70 seconds into play, although Scotland showed resilience in the second half.
“I was a little bit 50/50 as well on the Ché Adams [challenge], last man,” Clarke remarked. “He had a chance to go through one on one with the goalkeeper and is brought down. The referee chooses yellow. There is nothing we can do about it.”
Clarke also shared his thoughts on Diop’s foul on Scotland striker Ché Adams, saying, “Sometimes that goes for you. If we got a couple of those penalty decisions for us, I don’t think VAR intervenes. Out the corner of my eye, I could see [the Morocco defender] charging in. I got first contact to the ball and he took me out. It’s a penalty kick for me. Sometimes you get them, sometimes you don’t. If it was given on the field, no chance it’s overturned. “Morocco have got away with one there. But we need to be better and create chances from open play, not rely on referee’s decisions.”
Reflecting on his own situation, McGinn stated, “I am proud of the players but obviously we are all devastated,”
He added, “The players will suffer a bit over the next 48 hours. They don’t like losing against anybody. “Right throughout the team, Morocco had a bit of class. But we gave it a good go. Morocco know they have been in a game tonight. We have shown we can compete at this level.”
Scotland will soon shift their focus to a crucial match against Brazil in Miami, which will be pivotal for their hopes of advancing from the group stage for the first time.
“I am proud of the players, but obviously we are all devastated,” Clarke commented. “The players will suffer a bit over the next 48 hours. They don’t like losing against anybody.”
He acknowledged Morocco’s quality, stating, “Right throughout the team, Morocco had a bit of class. But we gave it a good go. Morocco know they have been in a game tonight. We have shown we can compete at this level.”
Clarke also praised Lewis Ferguson for his performance once again and reassured fans about Kieran Tierney’s condition after he sustained a second-half cramp before being replaced by Ben Gannon-Doak.
