Scotland vs. Haiti kicks off the World Cup in Foxborough. Here’s how they match up.

Scotland vs. Haiti kicks off the World Cup in Foxborough. Here’s how they match up.

FOXBOROUGH — Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay has recovered from a stomach ailment and is expected to play against Haiti in a World Cup Group C game on Saturday night.

Read more The biggest thing lost in Ipswich lacrosse cigar story is an opportunity to teach accountability

McTominay arrived in Boston from Charlotte, N.C., on a separate flight, accompanied by a doctor, then practiced with the team Friday at the Revolution Training Center. (Training visitors included restauranteur Gordon Ramsay, who played for Rangers on a trial basis in the 1980s.)

McTominay, 29, converted a key goal off a bicycle kick in a 4-2 win over Denmark that clinched qualification in November.

“I’ve got 26 superstars here. To try to put so much onto one person is not fair,” Scotland coach Steve Clarke said. “We are delighted with Scott’s abilities and what he can bring to the team. But we are going to need another 15 to bring the same if we want to have a positive tournament.”

After transferring from Manchester United to Napoli two years ago, McTominay emerged among the top attacking midfielders in Serie A and on the international stage. Until recently, though, Clarke had McTominay lining up on the back line for Scotland.

“Some daft head coach put him as a center half five years ago,” Clarke said.

Related: This teen from Watertown survived cancer. Now he’ll be a flag bearer at Saturday’s World Cup game.

Scotland, which last competed in the finals in 1998, has been revived under Clarke’s coaching.

“It’s going to be a difficult game. First time in 28 years we’ve been here, first time for Haiti since 1974. They’re also a proud nation. They’re going to be here 100 percent committed, same as we are,” he said. “And we know they have qualities that can cause us problems on the pitch, so we have to deal with those problems and we have to try and bring our best game to the pitch when we have the ball. If we can do that, then, hopefully that will be enough to win the game.

“It’s going to be a squad World Cup. The starting team is important, [but] I think you’ll find a lot of games the team that finishes the game is every bit as important, if not more important.”

Said Scotland captain Andy Robertson: “We’ve always been a team, and that’s what’s gotten us to where we are today. We’ve never been about individuals, nobody’s above anyone. We are a team of equals. Scott [McTominay] has been our lead man the last couple years. I believe anyone in the 26 that gets called upon can produce good moments and great moments, and that’s what you need to be successful. We’re just looking to have a good tournament as a squad.”

Robertson, who played nine seasons for Liverpool, confirmed he has signed with Tottenham.

“I’ve been very fortunate to play for the biggest club in the world. But, for me, playing for your country, and to do it at the World Cup, is just a dream come true for all of us,” Robertson said. “And it’s been something we’ve been working so hard towards as a country for the last 28 years, to make it happen. I’m just so proud and happy that this group of lads are the ones to do it.”

Read more Emboldened Senate Democrats block even bipartisan bills in hardball approach to counter Trump

Robertson said the team learned from its 2024 European Championship experience, when it fell to hosts Germany, 5-1, in its opener and went three-and-out.

“We probably used too much of our emotional energy probably too far out from the game,” Robertson said. “We were locked into that Germany game and I don’t think we were probably ready, and this time, we probably changed that as a collective.”

Defender Scott McKenna (leg) missed practice and is questionable for the Haiti game.

Haiti’s World Cup qualifying experiences have been unique. In 1974, it played host to the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying tournament, all matches contested at Stade Sylvio Cator in Port-au-Prince. Les Grenadiers advanced to the finals for the first time, but lost all three games in Germany.

This time, Haiti played all its qualifiers on the road, becoming the first country to make it to the finals that way.

“Today, it’s a whole different story,” Haiti coach Sebastian Migne said. “It is different from the 1974 era, and it is up to us to rise to the challenge.”

Related: Boston’s Haitian community celebrates World Cup qualification, team forward with Mass. roots

Migne said earning at least a point “would be a huge reward for the garçons, and even if we didn’t score any points [in the first two games], with the new rules, the best eight [third-place teams] advance. But we hope to accomplish that tomorrow, if possible playing nice soccer, so we can take the fans with us, and cultivate excitement around us. There are always teams like this, and we could be one.”

Migne called forward Frantzdy Pierrot, born in Cap Haïtien and raised in Melrose, “one of the pillars” of the team.

“What is great for him, he is currently at his best,” Migne said. “And he is in his hometown for his first game in the World Cup. That adds to the motivation and to the pressure, and I trust him to manage that.”

Read more Scotland’s World Cup takeover of Boston reached Fenway Park on Friday night

Post Comment

You May Have Missed