Scotland’s New Era Takes Shape

It’s been seven years since Scotland last welcomed a new manager. The Steve Clarke era spanned 81 matches and three major tournaments, concluding in a disappointing showing at the 2026 World Cup. Clarke’s influence was undeniable, but Scotland needed new ideas and turned to Sebastien Pocognoli for this.

Hired as a relative unknown to The Tartan Army, Pocognoli wants to overhaul Scotland’s playing style. Under Clarke, Scotland played a conservative, stodgy game. This worked for a long time, but the World Cup made clear that the likes of Scott McTominay, John McGinn and Andy Robertson required a new voice and a new approach.

Pocognoli has called up 28 players for the UEFA Nations League matches against Slovenia, Switzerland and North Macedonia, many of whom are new faces. Some of them were players previously pushed to the side by Clarke and others are youngsters being introduced to the senior national team for the first time.

“To be clear, I want to do this but I will never do it just because I want to try things,” said Pocognoli when asked about the number of youngsters and new faces included in his maiden Scotland squad. “I did it because the players selected are performing well. There are young lads but they need experienced players. We have a lot of leaders and players who know how to win games.”

Oli McBurnie has been called up after several years in the international football wilderness. The 30-year-old is a key figure for Hull City in the Premier League and should, in theory, give Pocognoli an attacking focal point to build around. McBurnie’s commitment has been questioned in the past, but his work ethic at club level can’t be doubted.

Robbie Ure is another new face in Scotland’s attacking ranks. The 22-year-old made a £8m move to Sevilla from Sirius in Sweden over the summer and is now a starting figure for his new team in La Liga. While Ure is yet to score his first goal for Sevilla, his ability to press from the front has surely caught Pocognoli’s eye.

23-year-old Kieron Bowie recently found the back of the net for Sassuolo against Juventus while 19-year-old James Wilson has scored five goals in his last eight appearances for Hearts. Pocognoli has completely revamped Scotland’s attacking ranks to handle his trademark energetic approach.

In midfield, Lennon Miller has been recalled after missing out on a place in the World Cup squad. The Udinese midfielder’s exclusion was controversial and Pocognoli has immediately sought to rebuild bridges with Miller who many consider to be Scotland’s brightest individual hope for the future.

Josh McPake has been included to give Scotland another true wide option beyond Ben Gannon-Doak. The Hearts winger has settled quickly at his new club after joining from St Johnstone in the summer transfer window and has shown enough to suggest he could offer Pocognoli something different.

Pocognoli has also done a lot to change the identity of Scotland’s defence. 22-year-old Luke Graham is expected to be given an opportunity to demonstrate his quality. Graham has made a strong start at Stoke City and is the sort of all-round centre back Scotland have lacked for years.

At 26, Stephen Welsh isn’t exactly young, but he has developed a lot over the last 12 months or so. Welsh was a key part of the Motherwell side that caught the imagination last season and Pocognoli could make good use of his ability to play out from the back under pressure.

20-year-old Colby Donovan has broken through at Celtic recently and has been rewarded with a place in Pocognoli’s squad while Brondby captain Luis Binks gives the new Scotland manager another option in the backline. Nobody really knows how Scotland will line up at the back against Slovenia on Saturday.

If all goes to plan, Scotland under Pocognoli will be an energetic, front-foot outfit. To play the way the Belgian envisages, Scotland needed a younger squad and he has already made progress in this respect, bringing down the average age by over two years from the World Cup. This is a new era for Scotland.