Get daily World Cup briefings from our writers across North America – plus more from Inside Sport after the tournamentGet our free World Cup briefing and sport emailGet our free World Cup briefing and sport emailJohn McGinn has urged Scotland to unleash more of their “personality” when they face Brazil in a pivotal World Cup clash in Miami on Wednesday. The Aston Villa captain’s call comes after Steve Clarke’s side suffered a 1-0 defeat to Morocco, a result that leaves their World Cup knockout stage aspirations hanging in the balance.An early goal from Ismael Saibari just 70 seconds into Friday’s Group C fixture at Boston Stadium means Scotland remain on three points. However, a single point against the formidable Brazilians would be enough to all but secure their passage to the knockout stages for the first time in their history. Brazil, who subsequently beat Haiti 3-0, now sit level with Morocco on four points with those teams occupying the top two automatic qualification spots.Speaking before Brazil’s victory over Haiti, McGinn reflected on the Morocco game, acknowledging the quality of their opponents while stressing Scotland’s own strengths. “We have come a long way as a country and as a group,” he stated. “They (Morocco) are filled with elite players, but we’ve got some elite players in there as well, so we need to start showing more of our personality, but we’ve got to be proud of how we reacted.”McGinn praised his team’s resilience after conceding, noting: “We could have folded, but in the second half we showed a lot more character and intent and we could have easily on another day drawn that game or even won.”Looking ahead to the decisive encounter, the midfielder expressed confidence in Scotland’s preparations. “We know what we need to do and we’re excited for it,” he said. “It will be different conditions, but conditions we’ve prepared for. Looking forward to the game, a big occasion for us. Brazil are a famous football nation, filled with players playing at a high level, so we’ll have to be at our best to get something from the game, but we’re excited by the challenge.”McGinn also voiced his frustration over two penalty claims that were waved away during the Morocco match. He believed he was fouled in the area by Neil El Aynaoui, and later, Scott McTominay was brought down by the Roma player. Ismael Saibari’s goal inside the first 70 seconds was enough to earn Morocco a 1-0 win over Scotland (Reuters)”When the…
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2026-06-20 09:30:32
