McTominay’s role unsettles Pocognoli after Scotland’s 0-0 in Ljubljana
Scotland drew 0-0 with Slovenia in Ljubljana on Saturday in their opening Nations League fixture, leaving new coach Sébastien Pocognoli with questions over where Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay will fit when he returns in November after a heart procedure.
Pocognoli, in his maiden match as Scotland manager, fielded a 3-4-1-2 shape while continuing to assess his squad across an elongated international window; he said McTominay’s absence was understandable as the player recovers and added: “He can play in many positions. He is a top player so he can read the game. We will see.”
The manager deployed Billy Gilmour and Lewis Ferguson as the two central midfielders in Ljubljana with John McGinn positioned ahead of them to support a two‑man strike force; Gilmour was heavily influential in the second half while Pocognoli praised Ferguson’s combative and defensive qualities and reiterated that McGinn, like McTominay, is a mainstay of the team.
On how McTominay might be integrated, Pocognoli said: “For now we just need to put the structure in place,” and added: “I hope Scott watched the game and thought ‘OK, I see myself in that shape in the second half’, and that with good discipline he can enjoy it. I hope he can look and think: ‘Yeah, I want to play.’” He also reported positive feedback from senior players, noting: “Andy Robertson was really positive after the game and said that he really enjoyed it. It is really good to hear that from top players.”
Pocognoli addressed the inclusion of wing options by defending a pathway for Ben Gannon-Doak, whose club minutes at Bournemouth have been limited, saying: “It will not be difficult to find a place for him. It is a process. At his club he also needs to settle. He is young and he needs to play more for his club. “He is a top, top kid first of all and a top player and a gamechanger and we don’t have a lot of those. That is why Josh McPake is also with us because I want more of that. Maybe in the future if those two make the step we can be open to exploring many shapes. “I think in that wide position in the shape we had in Slovenia it is risky to start him, because we have to know that sometimes you can be beaten in transition. The pattern on the ball can sometimes be bad and then it is not the game for Ben. But when we have good control on the pitch, like in the second half, that becomes his game.”
Pocognoli acknowledged the crowd’s frustration at times and emphasised the importance of creating chances, saying: “As long as we continue to create chances, you bring the fans alive. If we can produce the second-half performance at home I think it will be OK. But we cannot play 90 minutes like this. When we are resilient like we were in defending the box in the first half that is something we have to enjoy because it is not easy to defend like they did. “I think the crowd was positive at the end because we produced something that they wanted to see. At least we attacked and they did not have the feeling that they travelled for nothing.” Switzerland, meanwhile, may be without Granit Xhaka but beat North Macedonia 3-0 on Saturday evening.
Pocognoli indicated Oli McBurnie is likely to keep his place despite a 17‑game run without scoring for Scotland and the side having found the net only once in four games, commenting: “He played a good game. In the first half when it was difficult … but in that moment you give up or you stick together to fight for the team. Oli never gave up. He showed that he is proud and hungry to be here.”
Pocognoli, who is still learning about his squad while preparing for stronger opposition, will take Scotland into a Nations League match against Switzerland on Tuesday.