Scotland’s hopes of making the knockout stages of the World Cup for the first time in history are hanging by a thread after their 3-0 defeat to Brazil on Wednesday night.
Stuck in a holding pen over the next 72 hours, Steve Clarke’s men will be forced to watch as they await the results of others matches to see if they end the group stage as once of the best third-placed teams. It’s agony - with no promises at the end of the three day wait.
The first time the national team have competed in the World Cup since 1998, Steve Clarke retains hope of becoming the first manager in Scottish football history to lead the team to the knockout stages of a major tournament. The group stages were tricky, and the mood is low, but nothing is decided yet.
But how does Clarke’s tournament record compare to those who came before him? In total, they’ve been nine managers who have led Scotland into 12 major tournaments.
Here, The Scotsman rank every Scotland manager based on their tournament record - including the European Championships or World Cup - based on their major tournament record:
5. Craig Brown - 16.6%
The much missed former Scotland manager led the nation to Euro 1996 and France 1998, but could only muster a win ratio of 16.6% at major tournaments, which pales in compared to his impressive 45.07% overall record as national team boss. His tournament record is as follows: P6, W1, D2, L3, GF: -5. | PA
6. Steve Clarke - 11.1%
The only manager in history to lead Scotland to three major tournaments, Clarke is still hoping his side have done enough to make the final 32 of the World Cup this summer. As it stands, his major tournament win ratio is at 11.1%, with his record being: P9, W1, D2, L6, GD -12 | PA
7. Sir Alex Ferguson - 0%
Viewed as one of the greatest managers of all time thanks to his success at Manchester United and Aberdeen, Sir Alex managed Scotland for just 10 games, with three of them coming at the Mexico World Cup in 1986. Losing to Denmark and West Germany, his side ended the group stage with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay. His full tournament record is as follows: P3, W0, D1, L2, GD: -2. | PA
8. Dawson Walker - 0%
Managing the Scottish national football team at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, Walker took caretaker charge after Sir Matt Busby was injured in the Munich air disaster. He helped Scotland earn their first World Cup points with a 1-1 draw against Yugoslavia but lost to both Paraguay and France before stepping down. Walker had never managed prior to this and never managed again after his departure. His tournament record is as follows: P3, W0, D1, L2, GD: -2 | SNS Group 0141 221 3602