Steve Clarke expressed his belief that Scotland was denied at least one penalty in their 1-0 loss to Morocco. John McGinn and Scott McTominay both made strong appeals for penalties following challenges from Moroccan defenders. McGinn later stated that Neil El Aynaoui, a defender for Morocco, “Everyone when I did my television interviews was talking about the Scott McTominay one,”
While Clarke refrained from criticizing the match officials, he indicated that the decisions were close calls, suggesting that Morocco’s Issa Diop might have warranted a red card early in the contest. The decisive goal came just 70 seconds into the match, 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 Ché Adams, which resulted in a yellow card. “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.” Clarke noted. “I am proud of the players but obviously we are all devastated,”
Reflecting on his own situation, McGinn commented, “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.”
“Morocco got away with one there. However, we need to improve and create scoring opportunities through open play, rather than relying on the referee’s decisions,”
Scotland will soon shift their focus to a match against Brazil on Wednesday in Miami, which will be crucial for their chances of advancing from the group stage for the first time in history.
“I am proud of the players, but we’re all devastated,” Clarke said. “The players will feel this for the next 48 hours; they dislike losing to anyone.”
“Throughout the team, Morocco displayed a bit of class. But we fought hard. Morocco knows they were in a tough match tonight. We have demonstrated that we can compete at this level.”
Clarke, who praised Lewis Ferguson for the second consecutive game, alleviated concerns regarding Kieran Tierney’s injury, clarifying that Tierney only suffered from cramp before being substituted for Ben Gannon-Doak.
