Kazakhstan collapse sees McLeish sacked as Scotland boss

McLeish was hired in February last year and led Scotland to the top of their Nations League group, securing the safety net of a play-off should they fail to qualify automatically for the Euros next year from a group containing Belgium and Russia.

Alex McLeish’s second term as Scotland manager ended on Thursday as he was sacked following a humiliating 3-0 defeat to Kazakhstan to begin their Euro 2020 qualifying campaign last month.

Soccer Football - Euro 2020 Qualifier - Group I - Kazakhstan v Scotland - Astana Arena, Astana, Kazakhstan - March 21, 2019 Scotland manager Alex McLeish reacts during the match (REUTERS)

“Ultimately, the performances and results as a whole in the past year - and, in particular, the manner of the defeat in Kazakhstan - did not indicate the progress expected with a squad we believe to be capable of achieving more,” Ian Maxwell, the Scottish FA’s chief executive, said in a statement.

McLeish was hired in February last year and led Scotland to the top of their Nations League group, securing the safety net of a playoff should they fail to qualify automatically for the Euros next year from a group containing Belgium and Russia.

However, qualifying got off to the worst possible start in Kazakhstan and an unconvincing 2-0 victory over San Marino three days later did little to further McLeish’s case to be kept on.

Scotland have not qualified for a major tournament since 1998, but Hampden will host four matches at Euro 2020 and the SFA are hoping to reinvigorate the qualifying campaign under new management.

“We firmly believe we have the potential to recover from the opening group defeat and unlock the potential of this exciting squad of players for the remainder of the campaign, safe in the knowledge we also have the play-offs as an additional route to UEFA Euro 2020,” added Maxwell.

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