Scotland lost 2-0 to Peru in the early hours of this morning.
But the result isn’t the most important thing to come of the match – it was the performance of many new boys as well as some experienced players who made up Alex McLeish’s team.
The Tartan Army manager handed debuts to seven players in the game, with Jordan Archer, Stephen O’Donnell, Lewis Stevenson, Dylan McGeouch, Chris Cadden, Graeme Shinnie and Lewis Morgan all getting their first caps.
So how did they do? Here are our player ratings for the game:
Jordan Archer – 5
There’s been significant clamour for Archer to be given the number one jersey for Scotland after his emergence as Millwall’s first choice goalkeeper, but he did nothing tonight to support that. He made mistakes for both goals and they ultimately killed Scotland.
Stephen O’Donnell – 7
O’Donnell definitely didn’t look out of place on his debut. The Kilmarnock man was rewarded with a start after a fine season under Steve Clarke and he played like a man high on confidence. Considering Scotland’s lack of quality right backs, O’Donnell could find himself in future squads after that.
Charlie Mulgrew – 6
It was much of the same from Mulgrew, who captained the team tonight. McLeish knows what he’s getting from the Blackburn defender and nothing against Peru will have changed his mind.
Scott McKenna – 6
McKenna wasn’t as impressive against Peru as he was against Costa Rica and Hungary, but he didn’t do much wrong either. His handball did lead to the penalty opener for the South Americans, but that was more down to Archer’s mistake than his handball. Expect McKenna to continue at centre half going forward.
Lewis Stevenson – 6
Stevenson played like a man who knows this is probably his only Scotland squad call-up. When Kieran Tierney, Andy Robertson and Barry Douglas are back available, he’ll be back to spending international weeks in Edinburgh, but he made the most of this opportunity. Despite the occasional threat on the Peru right, Stevenson actually spent more time going forward and looked good doing it.
Dylan McGeouch – 7
McGeouch was definitely deserving of his start after playing so well for Hibs this season – and he proved that with a sound performance. He’s the only Scotland midfielder capable of dictating play despite it not always coming off in Lima. There’s a big case to be made for McLeish sculpting his midfield around the deep playmaking of the former Hibs man.
Kenny McLean – 6
It was always going to be difficult for McLean with him lining up on the right of the midfield. He’s an attacking midfielder and has done most of his good work over recent years playing through the centre, but he coped well and looked better late in the game when McLeish moved him in one. Nothing sensational, but nothing too bad either.
Scott McTominay – 6
That’s McTominay’s second game for Scotland and we’re still none the wiser about what sort of player he’s going to be for the national team. He’s box to box, simple and effective for Manchester United, but more is expected of him for Scotland – and he didn’t show that last night. Hopefully McLeish can find the right place for him before any competitive qualifiers kick off.
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