Memphis Depay scores only goal as Scotland lose friendly to Holland
Malky Mackay’s first game as interim Scotland coach ended in a 1-0 defeat by Holland in their friendly match at Pittodrie.
Dutch forward Memphis Depay opened the scoring from a Ryan Babel cross five minutes before the break after the visitors broke on the counter with pace.
The Scots upped the tempo after the break and created a couple of chances but could not the find the leveller.
Tweet of the match
Kieran Tierney is 20, playing Champions League football and captaining his country, meanwhile I still get my maw to phone the doctors for me
Tierney’s star continues to rise. The 20-year-old had already skippered Celtic before he was handed the armband for his national side on a night when he also moved from left-back to centre-back. Steady, assured and playing like a veteran, he was a real positive for the Scots.
Apart from the match ball having to be replaced twice in the opening moments, the goal was the only thing of note in the first half of a very low-key challenge match. A swift counter-attack by the Dutch ended with Memphis Depay bundling in a Ryan Babel cross.
View from the bench
Scotland interim manager Malky Mackay, right, saw his side lose to Dick Advocaat’s Holland (Andrew Milligan/PA)
Scotland’s interim boss Malky Mackay was, on the face of it, in charge for this game only and urged his playeres to aim for 50 caps. He started with three debutants in a young side captained by 20-year-old Kieran Tierney.
There were some decent performances and another impressive night’s work by the young Celtic defender but who knows what the new boss, whoever he may be, will take from it?
Former Rangers and Sunderland boss Dick Advocaat has insisted his Dutch side would be fully committed to the game regardless of its status. It did not look like that in the first half where they appeared reluctant to break sweat but they got their goal before the break and did enough in the second half.
Ratings
Scotland: Craig Gordon 6, Ryan Jack 6, Andy Robertson 7, Kieran Tierney 8, Christophe Berra 6, Kenny McLean 6, John McGinn 7, Callum McGregor 7, James Forrest 6, Ryan Christie 7, Matt Phillips 6. Substitutes: Charlie Mulgrew (on for Berra 45) 6, Ryan Fraser (for Forrest, 71) 6, Jason Cummings (for McGregor, 86 ) 5Holland: Jasper Cillessen 6, Timothy Fosuh-Mensah 6, Virgil van Dijk 5, Karim Rekik 6, Nathan Ake 6, Daley Blind 6, Quincy Promes 7, Kevin Strootman 6, Ryan Babel 6, Georginio Wijnaldum 6, Memphis Depay 7. Substitutes: Joel Veltman (for Fosuh-Mensah, 71) 5, Steven Berghuis (for Promes, 76) 6.
Who’s up next?
(Andrew Milligan/PA)
Scotland have no fixture scheduled.
Romania v Holland (challenge match, Tuesday November 14)
