- Goalkeeper David Marshall is a key figure in the current Scots streak
- The Scots want to end a 22-year-long drought with success in the UEFA Euro Playoff final against Serbia on Thursday.
- Marshall: We think the country wants our success
When David Marshall made his debut for the Scotland national team, the world was facing a presidential election in the United States. George W. Bush fought for his election and Donald Trump celebrated success with the first season of his TV show the Apprentice. This marks the continuation of the Scottish goalkeeper.
Marshall made his debut for the Scotland national team in August 2004 under German coach Bertie Vogts. Otto Rehgel became the European champion with Greece and Jose Mourinho won the UEFA Champions League with FC Porto. Invincibles Arsene Wasers lived up to his name as invincible from Arsenal FC. It seems like everything was long ago. How does marshal feel
“It’s crazy when you think back on those times,” said the 35-year-old FIFA.com. “The time passed so quickly. I was too young at the time and really just reserved the goalkeeper. I think my first five performances were under five different coaches.”
In fact, Marshall was still a teenager in the Celtic reserve squad until he was thrown to the deep end after a red card for the goalkeeper at the time. Marshall kept his box clean with Ronaldinho in round 16 of the UEFA Cup against FC Barcelona, helping Celtic Glasgow reach the quarter-finals. The following season, the goalkeeper in the UEFA Champions League also took a penalty from the legendary Brazil.
In the entire 148-year history of the Scottish national team, only one player had a career that lasted long, namely Ned Dogg, who made his first international for Scotland in 1887 and the last in 1903. Marshall is well on his way to breaking the record set by his historic goalkeeper predecessor in the coming months. But the Scottish goalkeeper is not proud of it at all.
“It’s not like I played most matches for Scotland during that period,” he said. “In the first ten years I had only a handful of missions. And I never joined a team that qualified for anything.”
“It’s a bit hard to digest because I’ve been a part of the squad for a long time and during that time very good Scottish players have come and gone. During that time I learned that it often doesn’t get a chance to qualify. There are big tournaments, So it is especially important now that we make it. “
Because Thursday will be one of those rare occasions when the Scots travel to Serbia for the playoff final for UEFA Euro 2020. They are considered outsiders, but after three wins against Israel, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, confidence in the Scottish camp is rarely high, especially since Marshall kept his box clean in all three games.
The highlight of the series was a penalty shoot-out in the playoff semifinal against Israel, with the Derby County goalkeeper quickly passing a shot, thus triggering a decision in favor of the Scots.
“It was a very strange experience,” he admits. “It was only later that I was told that Scotland had never played a penalty shootout before. It was also a new experience for me. The absence of fans made the situation even more bizarre. As a goalkeeper you Want a penalty as soon as possible. ” Grip to keep the opponent under pressure. Luckily, I managed it.
The strong performances by the Scottish goalkeeper and defensive line confirm the correctness of the coach’s decisions. Steve Clarke had announced that one of his first calls after taking a coaching position was to convince Marshall to return to the national team. The Scottish national coach stayed his course when he was criticized by the three-man Central Defense, and stood behind the sometimes heavily criticized actors like Scott Mactomin.
“The coach had precise ideas from the beginning and implemented his plan calmly, judiciously and purposefully, which is now clearly taking shape,” Marshall said. He said, “He’s sticking to his three-man series for three training camps. Things are something that takes a little time to deal with. We’ve now played five or six games with a three-man defense. Coach believes Is that it’s a good system, especially against Israel. “
“His attention to detail is impressive and people stand firmly behind him. But you need a sense of accomplishment so that everyone recognizes it. So it’s great that we have achieved this in recent months without achieving goals It is proven for everyone. We are developing in the right direction. “
“I definitely feel at home in this Scottish team. My club has also been doing quite well in recent years. Now I can prove myself again in the national team. I am enjoying it very much And want to keep my level as high as possible. ” From me for a special success for the country. “
Successful qualification for UEFA Euro 2020 will certainly live up to this wish. After all, it was more than 22 years ago that Scotland competed in a major tournament, and memories of the 1998 FIFA World Cup France ™ are fading more and more.
Marshall said, “I was a kid, but I still remember how we sat in front of the TV for the first game against Brazil and the players came out in their kilos.” “I still remember UEFA Euro 96. They are probably the earliest memories of the Scottish national team. Back then, it was almost normal for the team to be in a big tournament.”
“You can really feel how much the country wants to make us again. It’s really a shame that there are no fans in the stadium at the moment, because the atmosphere will be guaranteed to be unbelievable. But on social media and from all the videos . You feel for what the situation is and what it will mean for people. “
“In any case, we are absolutely determined to qualify and can only hope that fans will be allowed in the stadium again when the tournament starts. Our fans.” Tartan army Are just fantastic and deserve to be able to look forward to just doing something. “
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