Where does tonight rank?

[invergowrie arab]

That French team in 06/07 were miles better than this Spanish gang, but then again, we absolutely pumped them tonight so maybe it's a better performance.

I'd also liken tonight to France 89.

Nobody ever mentions Sweden in Italia 90 but I'm having that as its the only world cup win in my lifetime and was actually meaningful at the time so edges out CIS in 92 Switzerland 96.

It's maybe up there with Netherlands in Euros playoff.

[Lurkst]

Best win & performance I've seen at Hampden since France in 89 too.

 

[Merkie84]

For me this is the best result and performance since I started watching Scotland in the early 90s 

France away was a typical smash and grab. We hung on for dear life and the game seemed to be heading towards a 0-0 or inevitable late France winner. 
I remember the bar in Edinburgh I was watching it in, people were starting to not  pay that close attention to the game and  conversing with their friends. etc.  When McFadden hit that screamer , I remember a second or so of absolute stunned disbelieving silence before absolute bedlam ensued. 
 

Last night, there was always a feeling we could get something out of the game, we took a deserved early lead after taking the game to them, and apart for a wee 10 minute spell before half time we were never under prolonged pressure. Always felt throughout the game we could score another. We created as many clear cut chances as they did and their keeper was at least as busy as ours. 

[BFTD]

I think it beats out the France Euro 2008 victories because last night was pretty comfortable. France had just been to the World Cup final, but were dragged there by a determined Zidane, who was gone by the time we played them. They struggled at the next few tournaments. Still brilliant that we beat them, but not quite as impressive as it looks on paper.

Spain are clearly in a fallow period too, but frankly we were more likely to get a third than for them to get back into the game. It was great to see them reduced to rolling around in hope of a penalty/red card, only to pull their fingers out and try to actually win the game, and fail miserably  

[Highlandmagar]

Being an oldy, the night conquering Czechoslovakia 2-1 in 1973 to finally get to a World Cup finals takes some beating.

[Boo Khaki]

I understand why few will agree what with one of the games being a dead rubber, but trouncing the CIS in a game in a Euro finals and beating the ultimate runners-up in a WC finals group will always outrank any win over any team in a qualifying group. They are our only comfortable wins over serious footballing nations at major finals tournaments, and the former took place in the tournament that I believe represents our finest achievement. Finishing 5th in Europe is a bigger achievement than any of our first round WC exits, (ok, perhaps 9th in WC'74), and I don't really consider a narrow victory over Sweden in '90, or Switzerland in '96 as on a par with those two results. 

I'm too young to remember the Qualifying for 1974 but I think that's a good shout, and as much as last night was fantastic it will be glammed up a bit by recency bias. Beating France home and away was a great achievement in it's own right, but we shat the bed in Georgia and they still qualified ahead of us regardless, so I still consider the '89 victory over France as more meaningful and a more significant result that either of the 2006 or 2007 games.

The CIS game is the only time I can recall standing watching us stroll a game at a major finals, and never once be less than 100% certain we were going to dish out a pumping (relatively speaking). It was very similar to the imperious feeling last night, but just a pity it came in an ultimately meaningless match. I remember the Netherlands victory in '78, but I was much younger then and didn't really comprehend the magnitude of that result.

Edited March 29, 2023 by Boo Khaki

[101]

7 hours ago, git-intae-thum said:

This Spain team are a long way off what they were. It was a good solid home result. That is it.

We turned one of the world's best CM players into a seething mess, so even Spain would admit we didn't beat them we humiliated them.

Preventing them from getting anything more than a few long range shots and a load of cross balls that our 3 defenders thanked them for.

[GiGi]

It was great but for me it's about the same as Denmark. Spain not really having the talismanic danger man meant they just didn't seem as menacing as other top teams would.

No star striker coming off the bench to get you worried. Just a team of identical Bobby Barr-esque shitebags.

Alternatively I'm underselling the fact that we just made Spain look like a team of Bobby Barrs. 

[Jives Miguel]

Probably the best in my time.

 

Against France we were hanging on a bit. Last night was a fairly comfortable bodying.

[Self-raising Lazarus]

10 hours ago, Monkey Tennis said:

Yes, but are we not ranking particular results in relation to the stature of the opponents?  If it's just the importance of results, then the shoot-out win in Belgrade would have to trump everything for decades.

Aye fair point there, still stand by the Ukraine game in 07 though, world cup quater finalists made to look decidedly average that day.

[PrestersKTID]

In terms of result it's akin to the france games in 06/07. 

However we got battered in those games and snuck the wins.

We created multiple chances last night, played some nice stuff at times and limited spain to very little. It's one of our best every performances imo.

[Darren]

1 hour ago, Jives Miguel said:

Probably the best in my time.

 

Against France we were hanging on a bit. Last night was a fairly comfortable bodying.

A bit?! Absolutely pummelled for 90 minutes, a complete fluke that we won. That lightning struck twice in that campaign and we still failed to qualify...

Scotland were fantastic last night. Our best performance against a top 10 team in my lifetime, certainly,

[Richey Edwards]

3 minutes ago, PrestersKTID said:

In terms of result it's akin to the france games in 06/07. 

However we got battered in those games and snuck the wins.

We created multiple chances last night, played some nice stuff at times and limited spain to very little. It's one of our best every performances imo.

I'd go along with that. Can't believe people downplaying it saying Spain aren't very good anymore. They are one of the best international teams and had not lost a qualifier in years yet were comfortably beaten last night.

Not long ago Spain would have been shown too much respect and Scotland would have had the usual plucky 3-0 defeat.

[scottmcleanscontacts]

10 hours ago, Monkey Tennis said:

I was at that Belgium game in 1987, and I wouldn't put it alongside the others to be honest.

I know they'd been WC semi finalists a year earlier, but they weren't a huge power.  We were already virtually out by then too, so the crowd was small and it didn't feel significant.  

Tonight's was big, but is perhaps slightly diminished by coming so early in the campaign.

I disagree slightly, in that coming up with a win like last night so early in the campaign is all the more impressive and puts us in a better position than we’ve been in for donkey’s years after a couple of games.

[deadasdillinger]

Just below France for best result at Hampden I've ever seen. A much better performance though, which certainly elevates it. 

[Estragon]

Nice to see Spain reduced back to histrionic bottlers now the steroids have run out.

I'd rank that alongside Denmark last year, bigger games to come in this group. It really feels to me like that was a must-win in retrospect, fantastic to get it.

[tree house tam]

For youngsters that was a very good result. For older folk that's just a solid win in a qualifying game.

We're actually not that far behind the likes of Spain. Which is more a reflection on the Spanish side than us being brilliant. 

[craigkillie]

The older folk who saw us qualify for precisely zero European Championships before the 1990s?

[General dissaray]

13 hours ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

That sounds nothing like the team that beat France 

Don't understand where exactly your coming from,when it was the same players and squad?Strange reply man strange reply

[General dissaray]

5 hours ago, Richey Edwards said:

I'd go along with that. Can't believe people downplaying it saying Spain aren't very good anymore. They are one of the best international teams and had not lost a qualifier in years yet were comfortably beaten last night.

Not long ago Spain would have been shown too much respect and Scotland would have had the usual plucky 3-0 defeat.

Aye we got them at the right time though,when they get players back they'll be a different proposition still a absolutely fantastic result though for us we have put down the marker now

Edited March 29, 2023 by General dissaray