Scotland Coach Prioritizes Victory Over Performance in Belarus Clash

As of September 8th, 2025, Scotland's national football team is preparing for a crucial World Cup qualifier against Belarus. Head coach Steve Clarke has made it clear that the quality of his side's performance is not his primary concern - the only thing that matters is securing the three points.

Belarus suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat against Greece in their opening qualifier last week, but Clarke expects a tough challenge when the two teams meet in a neutral venue in Hungary. The Scotland boss says he would gladly take a narrow one-goal victory if it means his team can build on the positivity of their opening goalless draw against Denmark.

Midfielder John McGinn has spoken about the need for Scotland to get back to being "horrible" to play against, as they showed in the Denmark match. Clarke agrees with this assessment, suggesting that it is those gritty, hard-working attributes that could be the key to Scotland's hopes of reaching next summer's World Cup finals in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

"Horrible in a good way," Clarke explains. "Horrible in that they make it really difficult for the opposition, they work ever so hard when we don't have the ball. The basics, the nuts and bolts of football, are about doing the dirty stuff, the stuff where you have to do your hard yards off the ball. If we can do that across the six games, then I think we can get enough points."