Former Scotland captain Scott Brown heaped praise on their midfield display after the goal-less draw with England at Wembley.
Brown was impressed by the trio of Billy Gilmour – making his first Scotland start – Callum McGregor and John McGinn as Scotland kept their Euro 2020 hopes alive.
Gilmour earned rave reviews for his performance, while McGregor was a tidy, efficient presence alongside him in the middle of the park.
That pairing allowed McGinn to play further up the field, where he was able to get on the ball more and get closer to the main strikers.
Brown, who was on punditry duty for ITV Sport, said: “Scotland were a great team. They worked hard for each other. One went, two went, they all pressed together. The performance, they frustrated England.
“The midfield, Billy Gilmour, Callum McGregor and John McGinn, the three of them worked extremely hard. They outpowered them, they outran England.
“England looked leggy. They struggled to break through the lines but that was down to Steve Clarke’s formation. He got his tactics spot on and rightly so.”
Brown’s fellow pitchside analyst Gary Neville, the former England full-back, was full of praise for Scotland but was less so about the display of the home side.
Neville said: “You’ve just mentioned the three midfield players for Scotland, they were better on the ball than the three midfield players for England. In every single department – only (Jordan) Pickford I think played at the right level.
“All over the pitch I think Scotland were better and those physical levels need looking at, because it was a lacklustre display in such a big game.”
“Is it too big for them, in terms of expectation? For a few of those lads, it’s probably the biggest game they’ve ever played in. All the media leading up to the game, sometimes it can just mentally take it out of you.”
@GNev2 analyses #ENGSCO 🔍 pic.twitter.com/l2Cn0c3rlc— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 18, 2021
Brown, who will join up as part of the Aberdeen coaching staff this summer after leaving Celtic, hopes the national team can now kick on and qualify from the group.
He added: “It’s kept our dream alive. What we need to do is try score a goal; we need to win the game to get to the four points.
“We need a bit of luck as well. But if they do that, work as hard as they can, we’ve got a great chance. They’ve got to make sure they win the game on Tuesday now.”