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Scotland legend Graeme Souness has been captivated by the scenes unfolding in Boston as the Tartan Army continues its friendly invasion of the United States.
Souness has been watching fan footage of Scots blasting out bagpipes, drinking bars dry, and belting out songs at the baseball, charming locals across Massachusetts.
The former Scotland midfielder said: “We are a passionate nation. What an advert our supporters are. The Scottish Tourist Board must be jumping up and down.”
Souness, who starred for Scotland at three World Cups, believes Clarke’s side has already effectively secured a place in the knockout stages following their opening win against Haiti.
The victory was described as nerve-shredding, with Scotland holding on in the second half while struggling to keep possession in hot, humid, and sticky conditions.
Souness was honest in his assessment, admitting the team got away with it and must improve significantly ahead of their meeting with Morocco on Friday night.
He said: “I was delighted with the win. I think we got away with it because you can’t say we played particularly well, especially in the second half when we were holding on to a lead and couldn’t keep the ball.”
Morocco gave Brazil a chasing for 45 minutes in their 1-1 opener, and Souness has warned that the Atlas Lions will deal with the conditions far better than Scotland will.
He said: “There’s no doubt Morocco are a very good team. They will deal with the conditions better than we will. But anything is possible.”
Souness drew on memories of the 1982 World Cup in Seville, recalling lining up against Brazil and noticing his teammates were already bright red and soaking with sweat before a ball was kicked.
He recalled: “Davie Narey, the fool that he was, put us 1-0 up but they found another gear. But that Brazil team was the best team never to win a World Cup.”
Souness acknowledged Scotland faces a similarly daunting challenge this time, with Morocco and Brazil both ranked inside the top 10 in the world.
He said: “Scotland will be aware of the challenge in front of them. It wasn’t a surprise to me Morocco were arguably the better team against Brazil.”
Despite those concerns, Souness remains optimistic, pointing out that unexpected results across other groups mean Scotland may still need points to guarantee progression.
He said: “I think they are going to get out of the group. That’s already a very good World Cup. Once you get out the group you are amongst some very good teams, but football is a mad business.”
Souness signed off with a reminder that reputations count for little when the whistle blows, saying: “Names on team sheets don’t win you football matches — it’s who turns up.”
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