Will Scotland's Luck Hold For Biggest Test Of World Cup Dream?

World Cup qualifying Group C: Greece v Scotland

Venue: Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium, Piraeus Date: Saturday, 15 November Kick-off: 19:45 GMT

Coverage: Watch connected BBC Two, BBC Scotland, iPlayer, website & app; perceive connected BBC Radio Scotland & BBC Sounds; unrecorded matter commentary connected BBC Sport website & app

Okay, Tartan Army, tin you perceive Lady Liberty calling you from New York Harbour, tin you consciousness nan unreserved of nan Niagara Falls, tin you almost sensation nan tequila successful Guadalajara?

How adjacent do you deliberation you are to making it to nan World Cup adjacent summertime - aliases tin you not spell location conscionable yet? Too soon? Too overmuch for illustration tempting fate? Too bully to beryllium true?

We're now successful nan endgame of Scotland's group campaign. A tie aliases a triumph connected Saturday against Greece successful Piraeus - unrecorded connected nan BBC - and a triumph against Denmark (presuming they've already beaten Belarus) connected Tuesday successful Glasgow and it's done.

Six men's World Cups person travel and gone without Scotland and, frankly, it's opening to get annoying.

Sixty-one different countries person played connected football's biggest shape since Scotland past featured, from North Korea to New Zealand, from Togo to Trinidad & Tobago. It's time, isn't it? Well, isn't it?

Six points from 2 games aliases 4 points successful nan correct bid - 1 against Greece, 3 against Denmark - doesn't look insurmountable erstwhile Scotland person already achieved 10 points successful 4 games. But it's complicated.

Consider Scotland's past performance, a 2-1 location triumph against Belarus past month. Remember nan things that were said successful nan aftermath of that dismal contest.

Andy Robertson: "It doesn't consciousness for illustration a win."

Scott McKenna: "We fto ourselves down."

Scott McTominay: "We've sewage to beryllium amended than that."

On and connected they went. Honesty personified. It was stark and it was different and it was much awesome than thing we'd seen from them successful nan 90 minutes that went before.

You don't usually perceive specified talk aft a victory, but those comments kept coming.

Che Adams: "I deliberation they [the fans] were correct [to boo]."

Steve Clarke: "Really, really disappointed successful my team."

John McGinn: "At half-time, it was nan wildest I've seen him [Clarke] successful 72 games."

McGinn followed up later connected societal media, referencing nan brace of wins complete Greece and Belarus.

"Two jobby performances, but six monolithic points," he wrote. That conscionable astir summed it up.

So, successful position of nan group table, Scotland are successful a bully place, but successful position of belief and psychology going into this pivotal double-header, Lord only knows wherever they are.

They person nan information nett of a spot successful nan play-offs adjacent March, but that could beryllium sadistic terrain and it's champion avoided if they tin thief it.

We tin estimate astir Clarke's statement - is it Craig Gordon successful extremity contempt not playing a crippled each season; is it Ben Gannon-Doak contempt playing constricted minutes for Bournemouth; is it Che Adams aliases Lyndon Dykes aliases Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes?

All of that is up for grabs and we'll cognize it earlier kick-off.

What we won't cognize until things get underway successful Piraeus is nan mentality of these players aft specified an atrocious show past clip astir - Belarus astir apt deserved a constituent - and whether nan luck they've had successful nan past 2 games will hold.

It's a run that's flown by, opening pinch a hugely credible, and mostly unexpected, tie successful Copenhagen successful September. Scotland's resilience was evident that night.

Angus Gunn had not played a nine crippled since May. Lewis Ferguson had been an unused substitute successful Bologna's erstwhile 2 games. Adams had been successful and retired astatine Torino. Dykes had started 1 crippled successful six for Birmingham City. Aaron Hickey had played 77 minutes successful almost 2 years earlier facing Denmark.

Scotland fans were almost hyperventilating erstwhile Grant Hanley was named successful nan team, but nan Hibernian centre-back was terrific against Denmark, emblematic of a capacity that was disciplined, dogged and occasionally threatening.

A constituent distant from location - and a cleanable expanse - was an fantabulous opening to a group that fewer saw Scotland surviving in.

They backed it up pinch a master triumph complete Belarus successful a closed-doors crippled successful Zalaegerszeg successful Hungary. Two goals and different cleanable sheet.

Four points from six successful a six-game group. Out of nan blocks quickly successful a conception that is tantamount to a sprint.

Then everything became a small trippy successful October. Against Greece astatine home, Scotland didn't person an effort connected extremity for an hour. Greece led and deserved to beryllium starring by more.

Vangelis Pavlidis, their go-to striker, missed a sitter early connected and past missed again and again. Greece weren't successful immoderate threat and, lo, they were losing 3-1. "We were for illustration a pensive boxer," Dimitris Giannoulis, nan Greek substitute, said.

Credit Scotland pinch nan conflict they showed successful coming backmost from a grim place, but moreover successful triumph location were reddish flags each complete nan spot and moreover much truthful erstwhile they stumbled crossed nan statement against Belarus a fewer days later.

Luck was connected their broadside again. Belarus, who had already mislaid 5-1 to Greece and 6-0 to Denmark, had 22 attempts connected extremity to Scotland's 12. McKenna said later that Belarus "probably looked much vulnerable than us", which was broadly true.

Out of character, Clarke went barmy astatine nan break - and that's nan past clip we saw his team. Booed disconnected and slamming their ain performance.

And yet, connected an disfigured night, that array looked handsome. It was difficult to cognize what to think. And it still is.

There will beryllium nary Gunn and nary Billy Gilmour connected Saturday night. It's been an uncomfortably agelong clip since Scotland has seen nan champion of McGinn and McTominay, their copy totems, and Ryan Christie hasn't started immoderate of Bournemouth's past 5 games.

Gannon-Doak has played 53 minutes of nine shot since nan extremity of September - and he's expected to beryllium Scotland's fearless spark retired wide. It's difficult to beryllium fearless erstwhile you're a bit-part subordinate pinch your club.

To adhd to nan heady operation of uncertainty, Greece are retired of contention and their caput coach, Ivan Jovanovic, is nether pressure.

But this is Scotland they're playing, nan Scotland that sucker-punched them successful Glasgow and destroyed their World Cup hopes successful nan process. If they person a spot of vengeance successful mind past who would blasted them?

In early autumn, each Scotland protagonist would person bitten your manus if you'd offered them this scenario.

You mightiness say, though, that nan easy spot has been done and done good pinch bully luck connected board. Now comes nan hardest spot - nan biggest trial of their mettle to move different measurement person to nan top dream of them all.