McGinn strike beats Haiti as Scotland enjoy dream World Cup return
John McGinn scored Scotland's first World Cup goal for 28 years to ensure a winning start against Haiti in Group C.Brazil's earlier 1-1 draw with Morocco meant a victory for Steve Clarke's side would move them top of the four-team standings - and they held off a spirited Haiti to triumph 1-0.
Scott McTominay hit the post before McGinn sparked wild celebrations as his deflected shot hit the back of the net on the rebound in the 28th minute after Che Adams had been denied.
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McGinn scored Scotland's first goal at a World Cup since 1998
Haiti - back at the World Cup for the first time since 1974 - showed their threat with glimpses in attack and, with the Tartan Army still celebrating an historic goal, goalkeeper Angus Gunn spilled a shot from Carlens Arcus, but the ball was scrambled clear.Ben Gannon-Doak's angled-drive shot from an Andy Robertson cross was blocked by Martin Experience for a corner, which ultimately came to nothing.
McGinn missed a brilliant chance to put the game out of reach, dragging his effort wide of the post as the nerves kicked in.
Haiti kept pressing for the leveller and, with five minutes remaining, Frantzdy Pierrot headed narrowly wide from 10 yards, spurning a great chance.
It was a crucial victory for the Scots, but they may need to produce a better performance if they are to progress from the group stage for the first time in their history.The key moments from Boston...17: McTominay agonisingly close to the opener as his effort rattles the post.28: GOAL! McGinn's deflected shot gives Scotland the lead.30: Gunn spills a shot from Arcus but it is cleared73: McGinn misses a chance to make it 2-080: Perriot nods his header wide
Analysis: Points over performanceClarke's pre-match advice to his players was simple - "don't get humped".They did as they were told, but it was a nervy night for those in the stadium and back at home.Scotland lacked any proper control and know that will need to improve if they are to get out of the group as better sides than Haiti await.McGinn scored the only goal, but Gannon-Doak showed again what he can do in a Scotland jersey, although he was not used enough to really make his mark.The start they wanted, but still much work to do before they take on Morocco next.What the result means...
Clarke: Everyone said must win, and we wonScotland head coach Steve Clarke speaking to BBC Sport:"I just said to Andy Robertson - it's about time we won a game in the group stage.
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Steve Clarke speaks to captain Andy Robertson at full-time
"We put the supporters through it a little bit. Everyone said it was a must-win game - we won the game."This is what this team is all about. If they want to play, they can play, but if they have to dig in and show that character and resilience, that's what they do as well."Defensively, outstanding. We could have been a little bit better on the ball, but who cares - we won."Ferguson: We believed in ourselves
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Scotland top Group C after the opening round of games
Scotland midfielder Lewis Ferguson to BBC Sport:"Amazing, the scenes at the end. These fans have waited so long for that, so that was special and it was nice to take it all in."For me, it's a relief to get over the line because we were under a bit of pressure at the end."They're a good side, but we came here to win the game. We've done that so we'll move on to the next."There was a lot of pressure on us and we put a lot of pressure on ourselves as well to go and win the game."There were a lot of people expecting us to win and we expect to win as well - we back and believe in ourselves."I think we can play better. We can create more chances and score more goals, but we came here to do a job and we've done that."Player ratings:
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