Wednesday November 4th 2026
Scotland Head Coach Sébastien Pocognoli announces his squad at Hampden.
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Adam Bowen
The international break returns next week, where Scotland face North Macedonia at home (13th November) and Switzerland away (16th November).
Scott McTominay returns to the squad for the first time since his heart procedure which kept him out of the last camp.
Penrice has his first Scotland call up as Josh Doig is unavailable due to injury.
Che Adams makes his return, following his thigh strain injury with Torino that saw him miss out on the last camp selection.
Findlay Curtis remains in the squad and is a player that Head Coach Sébastien Pocognoli really enjoys.
Speaking on him he said,
“The moment he comes on for Rangers he always brings something special. And we need this.”
Speaking on another Rangers player, Penrice,
“James is one we have followed closely, because of his qualities also as a wing back. He has this offensive impulse and a good left foot for crossing. So, I think he is a good option.”
He is on loan at Rangers from AEK Athens and has started all 9 of the games he has been involved in this season. With his predominant position being at left back he can also fit in midfield perfectly; as displayed by his performance on Sunday in the league cup semi-final, where he picked up an assist to the winning goal.
The main news every Scotland fan wanted to hear was that star man Scott McTominay was back in the squad.
Pocognoli had this to say about him,
“I’m just excited to see him on the pitch, to see if he can bring something extra in the way we want to play”
“Scott is good on the ball, he can infiltrate without the ball. He can press high on the pitch or he can be box-to-box.”
Pocognoli really recognises the quality that McTominay possesses.
It will be very interesting to see how he plays under the new boss, as Steve Clark was such a fundamental part of transforming McTominay into the player he is today. He was the one who repeatedly played Scott higher up the pitch whilst he was still playing as a defensive midfielder at Man United.
It completely revolutionised Scotland’s attacking prowess with Scott McTominay being involved in numerous huge goals; the mural outside Hampden speaks for itself.
However, with this transformation comes pressure. Scott is a player that the fans repeatedly rely on and believe in. Pressure like this can sometimes hinder players and the fact that he didn’t have the best World Cup could be a sign that having the whole country’s weight on his shoulders was pulling him back.
Speaking on this, Pocognoli said,
“When you have players who have made the difference in most of the games through individual actions or a situation from nowhere, it’s normal that people then expect them to do it in every game.”
“It was a big reflection for me over the last weeks, to try and reduce the expectation here in two or three players.”
He spoke about creating opportunities for other players like Robertson, McGinn and most importantly the strikers to score, to try and tackle this pressure situation.
“It’s up to me to have a good structure around him so he can shine but not only him – all of the players.”
“He has a strong voice. He’s a different character to the others but it’s up to me, the game plan for him and the players, allows him to shine. And not him to make the team shine, that’s the challenge.”
Pocognoli seems excited to have him in the squad and looks forward to him being a part of the captain’s group.
This is Pocognoli’s Scotland squad for the upcoming fixtures:
Goalkeepers
Scott Bain (Falkirk)
Angus Gunn (San Jose Earthquakes)
Liam Kelly (Rangers)
Jon McCracken (Bradford City)
Defenders
Luis Binks (Brondby)
Luke Graham (Stoke City)
Jack Hendry (Al-Ettifaq)
Aaron Hickey (Brentford)
Nathan Patterson (Torino)
James Penrice (Rangers)
Andy Roberston (Tottenham Hotspur)
Kieran Tierney (Celtic)
Stephen Welsh (Swansea City)
Midfielders
Ryan Christie (AFC Bournemouth)
Lewis Ferguson (Bologna)
Billy Gilmour (Napoli)
John McGinn (Aston Villa)
Josh McPake (Heart of Midlothian)
Scott McTominay (Napoli)
Kristi Montgomery (Blackburn Rovers)
Forwards
Che Adams (Torino)
Keiron Bowie (Sassuolo)
Findlay Curtis (Rangers)
Ben Gannon-Doak (AFC Bournemouth)
Oli McBurnie (Hull City)
Robbie Ure (Sevilla)
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