Che Adams believes Scotland are “lucky” to have Scott McTominay after the Napoli midfielder proved his worth again with a penalty winner against Greece on Thursday night.
The former Manchester United player won and converted the spot-kick in the 33rd minute and it proved enough to give Steve Clarke’s side a narrow advantage going into the second leg of their Nations League play-off at Hampden Park on Sunday.
It was McTominay’s 11th goal in his last 22 appearances for Scotland and Torino striker Adams – although joking that he lost out on the penalty – spoke of his appreciation of McTominay.
🅿️ 🎯#GRESCO pic.twitter.com/HA9PtAQUcI
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) March 21, 2025
He said: “Scott has been massive. You can just see from his presence on the pitch. He helps the team in every aspect.
“Defending, running behind, scoring now as well. It’s a big bonus to have him and everyone’s happy that he’s scoring. He’s taken us up to win the games.
“He understands football and he’s amazing at making the box and arriving late and scoring goals.
“That’s what he’s helping us in the team now, that’s what he’s doing. We’re lucky to have him, to be honest.”
Adams, who conceded that he “probably” could have scored with a couple of chances he had, feels he has benefited from his move to Serie A from Southampton in 2024.
He said: “I think I’ve learnt a lot, to be honest, being over there and protecting the ball more.
“As you can probably see from Thursday, I’ve learned so much about my game in terms of helping the team build and move forward.
“That’s what I’m there to do. Scotty took the penalty tonight – I think he took it off me!
“He’s in a good moment, he deserves it and I’m happy that he’s took it, to be honest.
“Other people here take on the responsibility of scoring and I’m happy to win games.
A big result in Piraeus tonight – but we’re only halfway there.
We’ll see you on Sunday back at @HampdenPark.
➡️ We need your support – be there for a BIG night: https://t.co/lf8X0AQezX pic.twitter.com/8Wi70xtHXT
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) March 20, 2025
“I think that’s the most important thing, I’ve always said that.
“To help the team progress and get higher up the pitch, I’m happy to do that.
“Obviously it gives us something to build on now, going back to Hampden.
“It was a bit frustrating how we didn’t impose ourselves in the second half, but we dug in and we got the result in the end.”
