Steve Clarke has cautioned that a rapidly progressing Morocco side will pose every bit as stern a test as Brazil as Scotland look to make World Cup history in Boston.
After steering his team to an opening-night victory over Haiti, Clarke is aware that a draw against the North Africans would leave Scotland on the brink of becoming the first national side in nine attempts to reach the knockout stage of a World Cup.
Morocco, semi-finalists in Qatar, have climbed to sixth in the FIFA rankings and stretched their unbeaten sequence to 31 games after earning a draw against Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil in New Jersey on Saturday.
‘I think this Morocco team is every bit as strong, if not stronger, and they still have the potential to improve further. They will believe they can reach the semi-finals again.
‘We have huge respect for them. They have an excellent squad with a lot of gifted players.
Morocco held World Cup royalty Brazil to a 1-1 draw in their opening Group C match
‘They work hard, they are strong, and they have real speed. They also possess moments of quality, they can unlock matches, create one-on-one situations and beat opponents individually.
‘For me, Morocco are absolutely the real deal — a top-class team. As I keep stressing, we will need to be at our very, very best to compete with them.
‘I thought they were excellent first half against Brazil. Brazil showed a little bit of experience in the second half in that game to get back in.
‘We expect a difficult game from both and to try and separate them is difficult.’
Since Clarke took charge in 2019, Scotland have produced a number of big results against stronger nations including a draw against England and a win over Spain.
The manager hopes that mentality can again come to the fore in a game which sees them revert to the status of underdogs.
‘Against difficult opponents, we have to be very good. We understand that,’ he added. ‘But sometimes the Scottish psyche and the Scottish mentality mean we are a little bit more comfortable when we are the underdogs.
‘We were the favourites against Haiti and we found the game a struggle, but we managed to win. This time we are the underdogs and sometimes Scotland prefer it that way.’
Steve Clarke is wary of the threat posed by Morocco but was tight-lipped on team changes
Scotland failed to win a game at both Euro 2020 and 2024 yet reserved their best performances for the second group matches against England and Switzerland, respectively, which both ended in draws.
Pressed on why his side improved on both occasions, Clarke said: ‘To explain is really easy because we messed up the first game in both of them.
‘We knew we then had to give ourselves a chance going into the third game of the tournament, we had to get some kind of result, which we managed to do in both games, both draws.
‘It gave us some hope going into the last game. If we can repeat those middle-game performances against a very good Morocco side, then we’re all going to be happy.’
Having suffered an upset stomach which kept him out of training, Scott McTominay struggled to make an impact against the Haitians, but Clarke has no concerns about the side’s talisman.
‘I think the Haiti game was a struggle for a lot of the players, not just Scott,’ he stressed. ‘I thought Haiti controlled our midfield very well.
‘So, you have to give credit to them. Sometimes you don’t get the chance to bring your attributes to the game because of what the opposition do. I think that might have been the case. Scott’s in a good place and ready to go again.’
Clarke must decide whether to stick with two up top or bring in an extra defender or midfielder
Meanwhile, Clarke paid tribute to a Scotland supporter who died suddenly in the USA.
Long-serving Tartan Army member Donny Strathie, 76, from Grangemouth, passed away suddenly at a hotel in Boston on Sunday.
His family and friends have asked supporters to join in with a minute’s applause in the 76th minute of tonight’s game as a tribute.
‘Among all the great news around the World Cup for Scotland, this is obviously very sad. It’s sad for his family, his daughters and his grandchildren,’ said Clarke.
‘I think Donny’s ambition was to see Scotland at a World Cup again. Thankfully, he managed to do that before he passed but my thoughts and condolences are with his family.’
