Sebastien Pocognoli has not had a gentle start as Scotland head coach. Two home Nations League defeats in a row mean he names his second squad on Tuesday knowing that four points from the last two games is the minimum needed to keep promotion hopes alive, and that a slip at Hampden could even drag Scotland towards relegation. The squad he picks matters more than most.
What is riding on two games
The maths is unforgiving. Scotland host bottom-placed North Macedonia, then travel to table-topping Switzerland. Even if they take four points from those games they still need Slovenia to drop points against both sides to reach the promotion play-offs. Lose to North Macedonia and the nightmare scenario of finishing bottom of League B1 and dropping to League C becomes live.
McTominay's return changes the midfield
The biggest absence from Pocognoli's first squad was Scott McTominay, and the 29-year-old will surely be the first name on the sheet this time. He came back from minor heart surgery and immediately scored two doubles for Napoli. Billy Gilmour has had a harder time, sitting unused on the bench while McTominay returned as a substitute against Monza and again in the weekend defeat by Juventus, but Gilmour has otherwise become an automatic choice under the Belgian, alongside Lewis Ferguson, a mainstay of a Bologna side with three straight Serie A wins.
Ryan Christie has started four of Bournemouth's six consecutive victories without conceding, which makes it hard to leave him out. John McGinn's situation is similar, even though Aston Villa lost their one game in nine when he came off the bench. Kenny McLean, 34, has played only 45 minutes as a substitute for Norwich since an injury forced him out of the last squad, so he looks the likeliest to miss out.
Defence, goalkeeper and the search for goals
Scott McKenna will be absent because Dinamo Zagreb have ruled him out for two weeks, which opens a place at centre-back for Jack Hendry, Stephen Welsh or Luke Graham, who has helped Stoke to three games without conceding. Kieran Tierney is fit again but Celtic's defence has looked shaky, and Andy Robertson has started Tottenham's three straight wins even if he rarely finishes games at 32. Right-back remains the real problem, with Celtic's Colby Donovan the only regular starter among the options.
In goal, Scott Bain's display against Celtic strengthens his case with Angus Gunn benched in America. Up front, Che Adams should be recalled after two goals in four games for Torino, while Oli McBurnie has scored his first two goals of the season for Hull City, who are eight games without a win. Kieron Bowie has not scored in five since his goal against North Macedonia last month. Whoever gets picked, the selection is a question Pocognoli cannot afford to get wrong at Hampden.
Preview context: Scotland v North Macedonia (Hampden Park) and Switzerland v Scotland, Nations League B1, final two group games. Squad announcement due Tuesday 3 November 2026 from head coach Sebastien Pocognoli. Scotland need at least four points to keep promotion hopes alive and need Slovenia to slip up; defeat to North Macedonia would leave relegation to League C possible.
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