Scotland captain Andy Robertson apologised to the nation after being knocked out of Euro 2024 on Sunday night.
The Tartan Army went into their final group stage clash against Hungary with both sides realistically needing a win in order to advance to the last 16. A draw may have been enough for Scotland to secure qualification, but given this would have left them with only two points from three games, this was widely seen as an unlikely enough tally to send them through.
Scotland’s performance in Stuttgart was largely flat and they didn’t get out of first gear until ten minutes of stoppage time at the end of the second half. They registered only four shots, which all came after half-time and none of which were on target.
The game was settled by a 100th-minute goal from Kevin Csoboth at the end of a quick Hungary counter attack, and much focus has been placed on manager Steve Clarke’s tactics, again choosing not to deviate from a back-five formation until late in the day.
Speaking post-match, Scotland skipper Robertson said: “It will take a long time to get over this one.
“We knew there was going to be a point in the game where we could go for it and bring on the players we had on the bench to go for it that wee bit more. We did go for it but we got sucker-punched at the end. A draw wasn’t going to be enough realistically so both teams had to go for it and unfortunately one of us had to lose.
“Tonight is devastating. There is no buttering it up. All the lads are absolutely gutted. It’s up to us to pick them up and that will only happen slowly but surely. What I will say is thank you to the country because we felt everyone behind us and we knew the excitement back home. Sorry for letting you down.”
Scotland have been knocked out in the group stage of a major tournament at all 12 competitions they have qualified for, four of which have been European Championships.
Hungary’s spot in the knockout stages is not yet assured as they still need to rank among the four best third-place teams – they currently sit third out of six in the mini-table.
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