Scott McTominay took off and then kept on running. After timing his arrival into the box to perfection, catching the volley sweetly to double Scotland’s lead against Spain, McTominay continued along what was a pleasing curve along the touchline amid the chaos, soaking in the scenes of utter disbelief in the Hampden stands alongside Kieran Tierney. McTominay ended his run at Steve Clarke, the manager who has unlocked this remarkable goalscoring spell. In Clarke’s typical understated manner there was a pause, followed by a pat to acknowledge that his Scotland players had listened carefully to his words.
Clarke had challenged Scotland to write themselves into the history books. With references to Kenny Dalglish and his iconic goal to seal Scotland’s previous win over Spain in 1984, Clarke said this team would be remembered for years to come if they could repeat the feat. By full-time they had, and McTominay could take in Hampden’s greatest night under Clarke and with this team. Scotland were looking up, sitting at the top of Group A, and with a new generation able to get giddy at the picture of a perfect start to qualifying.
