Scotland midfielder John McGinn credited Liam Cooper’s vocal encouragement and some respite from the sun as sparks for their unlikely Oslo comeback along with their “phenomenal” substitutes.
McGinn admitted Scotland had barely posed a threat before goals in the final four minutes from Lyndon Dykes and substitute Kenny McLean earned a 2-1 victory over Norway.
Cooper had come on for the fatigued Kieran Tierney not long after Erling Haaland had put the hosts ahead with a 61st minute penalty and McGinn was inspired by the defender’s rallying cries.
The Euro 2024 qualifier had begun in heat of about 30 degrees and Scotland were struggling to get back in the match but the arrival of McLean, Stuart Armstrong and Billy Gilmour and a change of tactics helped turn the game.
McGinn was pushed further forward and had a hand in both goals but he was quick to praise Cooper.
“Coops is a leader, he has been captain of Leeds for a long time now,” the Aston Villa skipper said.
“He came on and he was screaming ‘just one chance, we only need one chance’. And that just filtered through.
“Don’t get me wrong, it was roasting, but the shade started coming in towards that end and I don’t know if it suited us but we got a wee bit of energy from somewhere.
“And a mistake at the back from them and Dykesy is alert and capitalised and from there the momentum is with us.
“From nowhere really. They will be feeling a little bit hard done by, they were the better team during the game. But I thought our subs were phenomenal.
“We played all right, we were in a good shape, we weren’t letting them create many chances but we weren’t doing anything in the game.
“Credit to every single sub, they were frightening. The manager said before the game, it’s always hard picking a starting 11 because of the strength and depth we have, which we didn’t have before.
“I am just delighted for Kenny. He is so under-rated, he is a top, top player, and it was never in doubt when Dykesy laid it off that he was going to score.”
McGinn was also given some impetus when he sneaked a view of the live Group A table when Norway scored.
The former St Mirren and Hibernian player was determined not to let March’s win over Spain be cancelled out and the quickfire goals opened up an eight-point gap over Scotland’s opponents.
Looking ahead to Tuesday’s Hampden clash with Georgia, McGinn said: “It could be significant but that’s the word – could. We need to back it up.
“When the group comes up on the big screen, I know I’m not supposed to be watching it, but when Norway went 1-0 up you look at it and it’s wide open again. So then the Spain game goes to waste.
“It’s important for us after the start we have made to make sure it didn’t go to waste.
“All the boys deserve immense credit but again it means nothing without a big performance on Tuesday night.
“We need to be consistent, we need to perform well, and as much as it’s strange for us, we need to try and start getting used to it.”
Chicago Fire 1-4 Inter Miami: Suarez on target once more in road win
Luis Suarez scored two and orchestrated another as Inter Miami cruised to a 4-1 win over Chicago Fire at Soldier Field on Saturday.
His shot led to the opening own goal before his second-half double put the game out of reach as Miami stretched their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to nine points.
Suarez played a neat one-two with Diego Gomez to set up a strike from the edge of the box, and though Chris Brady did well to save it, he pushed it straight against Tobias Salquist, who chested it over the line 25 minutes in.
The Uruguayan thumped a free header against the bar minutes later, but finally got his reward just after the break – he raced in behind before slotting a neat shot in at the near post.
Alba then picked him out for his second in the 65th minute, fizzing a low cross into the six-yard box for him to guide past Brady.
Gomez was unlucky from distance as his drilled shot hit the inside of the post before Georgios Koutsias' instinctive close-range finish beat Drake Callender.
Substitute Robert Taylor then rounded off the scoring with a lovely first-time finish in stoppage time.
Data Debrief: Suarez continues to step up in Messi's absence
Miami have now been without their talisman Lionel Messi for three months due to the Copa America and an ankle injury, but Suarez has proven once again that they still pose a threat without him.
He has scored four times from a total of 12 shots since MLS resumed, with nine of those coming in this game.
The 37-year-old ran the show, leading the team in expected goals (1.4), shots on target (five), touches in the box (eight) and big chances (four).
Fonseca shrugs off talk of rift with Milan duo
Paulo Fonseca was quick to dismiss talk of any tension with Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez, who both appeared to snub him shortly after coming off the bench.
The pair came off the bench to help earn a 2-2 draw with Lazio on Saturday, being brought on in a quadruple change by Fonseca after being left out of the starting line-up.
Milan were losing 2-1 at the time of their introduction, and they immediately turned things around, with Hernandez and debutant Tammy Abraham, another substitute, involved in Leao's equaliser.
Minutes later, the game stopped for a cooling break, with both managers using the opportunity to instruct their players, but both Leao and Hernandez remained on the far side of the pitch, taking no part in the team talk.
"The situation with Theo and Leao, there is no problem and I think Theo has already explained," Fonseca told DAZN.
"We don't need to create any problems. This week I spoke with the players and they accepted my decision. There is no problem, I was concentrated, and I didn't see that they weren't there."
Hernandez had already given his reasons immediately after the game.
"We had been on for two minutes, we didn't need the cooling break," Hernandez said.
"It was nothing against the team and the coach. Then people talk, say things that aren't true. Rafa and I are always with the team to help, and that is the important thing."
Milan are still without a league win this season after three games, but Fonseca says he saw a decent performance in the opening half, giving him something to work on.
"We had a good first half. We always managed the game well with the ball. When you control the game like this, we have to have more moments to become dangerous, but it's something we have to work on," Fonseca told Milan TV.
"We must always have the courage we had in the first half because we did good things. If we had won the other two games, this could have been a good result, but it is not so. But we have to start from today's first half."
Brentford 3-1 Southampton: Bees begin life after Toney with comfortable win
Brentford began life without Ivan Toney with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Southampton.
Bryan Mbeumo’s brace and a Yoane Wissa goal proved to be the difference between the two sides and condemned the Saints to their third straight loss since promotion back to the Premier League.
With departed striker Toney watching in the stands after his move to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, the hosts proved too strong for Russell Martin’s men. They created the superior chances and capitalised on an error-strewn performance from Southampton’s backline.
Mbeumo opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time before doubling the lead halfway through the second period and Wissa then got on the scoresheet moments later to continue Brentford’s strong start to the campaign. Yukinari Sugawara bagged a consolation in injury time for the Saints.
Brentford sit in fifth place ahead of the first international break, while Southampton are second-bottom of the league table with zero points.
Data debrief: Wissa continues to prove effective at home
Wissa now has five goals and two assists in his last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford have recorded consecutive home league wins for the first time since last November, and the first time in their opening home games since August 2018.
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