Scotland could have been dreaming of its world cup entry until recently, but after its poor run in world cup qualifiers; it has very little chances to make its dreams true. It is all because of just two points it earned out of four played matches in Group A. Basically; it was the best chance for Scotland to play in the biggest soccer event after 1998, but unfortunately; Scots will only be the spectators this time too. The line of fire, which is responsible for this performance, includes its coach Craig Levein although; there was some time left in his three years contract with Scots. Actually, during his tenure as coach, Scotland losses ten places in FIFA ranking apart from winning just three matches out of 12 matches played under his mentorship. The surprise decision came on Monday when he was informed about his dismissal from the job, in the meantime, Billy Stark, the under 21 coach, will take over his duty until a replacement is found. This is perhaps the first major performance reward given to any coach in 2014 WC qualifier matches, and as the finalists are being decided, many more strict actions are lined up from various teams.
Scotland has to play its next world cup qualifier on March 22 which is far away at the moment, but before that; it has to play a friendlier with Luxembourg next week. In light of unexpected sacking of its national coach, team announcement will be delayed, as told by FA. Interestingly, despite his removal, he will continue getting his pay for his remaining contract period that means he will be enjoying nearly twenty months’ paycheck without doing anything for the scots! Though, the news saddened the world, but this is something that was expected from quite some time, coz of his deteriorating performances. Perhaps, his three wins result out of twelve matches is among the worst in recent Scotland history.
There is also a section that is supporting Levein’s contribution to Scotland’s long term strategic soccer development; it includes many current players like Charlie Adam and Captain Darren Fletcher among others. Moreover, SFA chief executive Stewart Regan also expressed his sadness while announcing Levein’s sacking. During his press conference, he said, “There are a number of factors but what was discussed in the board meeting needs to stay private. However, we are bottom of the group with two points from four games. We are eight points behind the leaders.”