Pocognoli’s Scotland held to 0-0 by Slovenia in Ljubljana in Nations League opener on 26 September 2026

Sebastien Pocognoli's Scotland were held to a 0-0 draw by Slovenia in Ljubljana on 26 September 2026, claiming a Nations League point after an improved second-half display that followed a disjointed first 45 minutes. Pocognoli described his debut as "two games in the same game" after his side produced enough chances to win but had to settle for a goalless result.

Scotland made two debut appearances and welcomed the return of Oli McBurnie, with a change of shape arriving after seven years under Steve Clarke ended following the World Cup in the summer. Pocognoli admitted the team struggled for structure early on: "First half, was not what we expected in terms of structure," and said the half-time adjustment produced a better second half: "We were in between for the press, actually we were a little bit surprised about the formation of Slovenia, but at half-time we fixed this and you can see that the second half was much better." The match was the first of four games in this international window.

Billy Gilmour, back from the injury that forced him to miss Scotland's World Cup campaign after the Curacao warm-up, was shifted deeper at half-time and proved influential in the second half alongside Lewis Ferguson. Former Scotland midfielder John Collins called him "the catalyst for everything," while Pat Nevin described Gilmour as "close to a creative 10." Gilmour completed 32 passes into the final third — more than any other player on the pitch — and combined with McBurnie, slipped in Robbie Ure who crossed rather than shot, and threaded a through ball to Kieron Bowie that should have produced a goal.

Pocognoli explained the tactical tweak that involved Gilmour: "We fixed the position of Billy to be a little bit lower and to have Oli McBurnie a little bit more in his box, with two sixes and two 10s, and we were more compact to regain the ball when we lost it." He also praised Gilmour directly: "He's a fantastic player, I really like him. He's a creative player who always looks forward, always ready to find a solution with a clear game plan, also a good presence around the box and also very good defensively."

Swansea defender Stephen Welsh earned one of the debuts, lining up on the left of a back three despite being right-footed, and his positional shift helped Scotland press higher after the break. "It was the starting position of the back three for which changed it - they were in a really good starting position," former Scotland defender Callum Davidson told BBC Scotland, noting the back three were "quite deep" in the first half before improving. Welsh produced 16 passes into the final third, created a clear goalscoring chance with a through ball to Bowie, and finished with the match's highest accuracy rating.

Oli McBurnie made his first Scotland appearance since 2021 as injury issues to Che Adams and Lawrence Shankland left him leading the line, while Robbie Ure made his debut after his move from Sirius to Sevilla and Kieron Bowie entered from the bench. All three attackers had chances in the second half: McBurnie nicked possession and could not round Jan Oblak and later had a header kept out by Atletico Madrid's goalkeeper; Ure struck a low first-half shot off the post from distance and later chose a cut-back when slipped in by Gilmour; Bowie posted the highest expected goals figure for Scotland at 0.94 despite playing 25 minutes and twice failing to beat Oblak.

Concerns about Scotland's finishing were underlined by their recent run: "International level is all about taking your chances, you don't get too many," Davidson said. "It's about being really clinical, so for these strikers it's important when you get games like this to take your chances. That's the disappointment from today." Scotland have scored one goal in their last four competitive matches.

The draw leaves Scotland with a single point from this match and, as Pocognoli noted, it was "only the first of four games in this international window," with three further fixtures to complete their schedule in the period.