Belgium 2 Scotland 0: Final nail in the coffin for Scots' World Cup campaign but is it end of the line for Levein?

ONLY an inspired display from No.1 Allan McGregor prevented Scotland from being on the receiving end of a comprehensive defeat.
The Belgian players celebrate their opening goal against Scotland The Belgian players celebrate their opening goal against Scotland

SCOTLAND are now in freefall. A second successive Group A defeat has sent Craig Levein’s side into a tailspin from which there will be no recovery.

The World Cup campaign ended last night when a wonderful, totally dominant Belgian side demonstrated to Levein what real progress looks like.

Even though there was never any chance of Levein’s less-than-ordinary team finding the courage or intelligence to strike back after Christian Benteke and Vincent Kompany had scored, no other Scotland side has taken such a battering.

It wasn’t physical. But it was phenomenal. What Belgium did last night bordered on sporting cruelty but that’s what good teams do. They drive home their superiority.

Of course they always need victims and that’s where Scotland fit in. Victims. Innocent, almost witless victims in the big bad world of football.

Levein, for all his defiance, has been shown up to be inadequate. He hasn’t been able to make a difference and another campaign is on the rocks.

Only four matches in and we’ve been pushed over the edge. It’s hard to take because last night was the first time we had met a good side and the damage had already been done.

Home draws against Serbia and Macedonia, followed by that horrible defeat in Wales last Friday, meant Scotland had to win in Brussels. But not because that would have put us back on the road to Rio.

No, Scotland and Levein went into the King Baudouin Stadium hoping to grab a draw, or by dint of some miracle a win which would have slowed their fall.

They were looking for the parachute which a positive result here in Brussels would have offered but yet again the points eluded them.

So the question we should now be asking when it comes to Levein and his chaotic reign is not: ‘Where are the points?’ It should be: ‘What’s the point?’

Few teams could have lived with Belgium last night but if Scotland had been halfway decent, or making progress as Levein has often said, the campaign would not have been derailed by this defeat. It’s sad for him but it is even more depressing for all those Tartan Army hordes who make these journeys.

They are the ones who suffer most and Levein’s departure might help bring a quicker end to their pain.

Some people in sport break records and sound barriers. Others, like Scotland players and this manager, just break hearts.

Although Charlie Adam had taken over from Scott Brown at half-time in Cardiff it was James McArthur who started last night.

Presumably Levein considered him to be a more serious defender than the Stoke City midfielder and just a glance at Belgium’s line-up was enough to know Scotland’s defence would be under considerable pressure.

Even without Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, who was dropped, they still looked a dangerous side.

A previous World Cup campaign had ended here in 2001 because of defeat and Scotland were back determined to make sure history wouldn’t repeat itself. Levein stressed again, this time only an hour before kick-off, his side had come to win and to have any chance of that they would need to make sure they didn’t concede early.

Within minutes a posse of Belgian players, including Dries Mertens, Benteke and Kevin de Bruyne, battered in shots which cannoned off Scottish players who threw themselves into the line of fire.

Somehow Allan McGregor, who made three saves in a matter of seconds, saw his goal survive the barrage but Scotland were under siege.

The pressure wouldn’t have done Danny Fox a whole lot of good because he stretched a lower stomach muscle during the warm-up and had to receive treatment. He would have preferred to have eased himself into the match but Belgium were in a hurry to do damage.

Christian Benteke heads home the opener

They surged forward again and McGregor had to make saves from Axel Witsel, Jan Vertonghen and Nacer Chadli in rapid succession.

This could not continue and Levein was out on the edge of the technical area trying desperately to bring some order to Scotland’s play. They won a throw-in 20 yards out on Belgium’s right. Just after the shy, Steven Fletcher went over on an ankle and play was halted. Respite.

But then, almost a breakthrough for Scotland. A harmless ball back towards the Belgian keeper, Thibaut Courtois, caught Shaun Maloney’s heel and
Courtois had to twist to save.

Vertonghen then blasted over McGregor’s bar before Witsel forced Christophe Berra to concede a corner. That was defended but Scotland were being constantly harassed and failing to keep any kind of possession.

They did, however, have a penalty shout about 20 minutes in when Kris Commons went down in the box after a challenge from Thomas Vermaelen.

The referee wasn’t interested and seconds later McGregor had to parry Toby Alderweireld’s delivery into the path of Chadli who dinked the ball to striker Benteke.

He failed to make contact but Courtois just got a touch on Maloney’s 22-yard free-kick to deny Scotland what would have been a thoroughly undeserved but immensely welcome goal.

Darren Fletcher and then McArthur gave the ball away and Moussa Dembele curled in a long-range shot which flew only a yard wide of McGregor’s right-hand post. De Bruyne then ran and twisted away from three Scottish players but his shot was blocked.

Dembele sent in a fierce effort which fizzed off target, Mertens tried a more subtle approach, curling a shot wide, Dembele tried again and then Mertens thought he would have another go.

This was turning into target practice for the Belgians.

Maloney, however, was brought down about 26 yards out and finally Scotland had another chance. This time Commons took the free-kick and Courtois had to make a great save.

The Scots weren’t out of it and if you read that quickly you might even believe it. But here’s something else unbelievable. Scotland got to the break still level.

Belgium manager Marc Wilmots was furious at the number of chances squandered and Dembele paid the price. He was kept inside and Hazard set free from the bench.

Wilmots didn’t even stay in the dressing room and paced up and down his technical area instead. But Levein also made a switch with Jamie Mackie taking over from Commons in the hope that his greater tenacity could do
something to stem the tide of red towards McGregor’s goal.

And why not? It was already a miracle Scotland hadn’t conceded a barrowload so anything was now possible despite the waves of Belgian attacks.

A cross as wonderful as his name from Alderweireld dropped precisely for Chadli but his header drifted just over and again the Scots were being battered with Gary Caldwell having to stick out a leg to stop Hazard’s volley.

Mertens was withdrawn in 55 minutes with Everton’s Kevin Mirallas slotting in wide left but Scotland’s fans were beginning to dream of the impossible as the time ticked away. Only half an hour left and still, remarkably and inexplicably, it was goalless.

McGregor was booked for trying to kill even more time as he fumbled to retrieve the ball trapped on the roof of his net.

Scotland would have hoped they could prevent the Belgians from scoring but they’d have planned on being more accomplished, not that any Scot was complaining when Caldwell and then McGregor blocked shots from Hazard and de Bruyne.

But the law of averages dictated the Belgians would score. And they did.

De Bruyne’s lovely cross from the right floated in and with Berra and Fox leaping, at one another it seemed, Benteke rose and nodded his side in front in 69 minutes.

While the Scots were still trying to catch their breath Belgium struck again. Kompany took possession about 16 yards out and thumped in a shot which almost removed McGregor’s net.

After all his heroics the keeper was forced to remove the ball from the net twice in two minutes. Cruel on the Scots, yes. Unfair, never.

The Belgians had been superb. They were as ferocious as they were slick and talented. They were a joy to watch and Wilmots had given Levein a masterclass in how a team should perform.

This was spellbinding, mesmerising football and although the Belgians were killing off Scotland’s World Cup dream they were beautiful assassins.

Belgium are heading for the finals but Scotland are going nowhere. And they will continue towards oblivion if Levein is allowed to stay in charge.

There is no evidence to suggest he should be kept. It’s over for Scotland, it’s over for the fans and, battered and bruised in Belgium, it must be over for him.

Taken from the Daily Record