Scotland beat Haiti 1-0 to mark a winning return to the World Cup

Image
 14 Jun 2026 A scrappy finish by John McGinn allowed Scotland to mark their return to the World Cup after a 28-year absence with a nervy 1-0 win over outsiders Haiti. Aston Villa captain McGinn fired in with the aid of a deflection just before the half-hour mark at the Gillette Stadium just outside Boston, which was filled to its 64,000 capacity with a majority of Scottish fans. They have travelled to the United States in large numbers to follow Scotland’s first World Cup campaign since 1998 and were able to celebrate a rare victory at the tournament as they go top of Group C. It is Scotland’s first win at a World Cup since a 2-1 defeat of Sweden in Italy in 1990, and their first victory at any major tournament in 30 years, since Euro 96. Steve Clarke’s team are bidding to make history by reaching the knockout stages, something Scotland have never done at the World Cup. They had to hang on grimly at the end, but the victory puts them on course to get to the last 32, especially as t...

Scott McTominay strikes again as visitors go clear at top of Serie A standing - 'Unimaginable'


Napoli moved clear on top of Serie A with a statement 3-0 win over Fiorentina on Saturday. Scott McTominay continued his strong start to life in Italy by scoring his fifth goal of the season in all competitions to finish the job after earlier strikers from David Neres and Romelu Lukaku. Napoli moved top on 44 points, a total that assistant coach Cristian Stellini described as "unimaginable."

Scott McTominay applied the finishing touch to Napoli’s 3-0 win over Fiorentina with his fifth goal of the season as the Partenopei went clear at the top of Serie A.

Scotland international McTominay has made an impressive start to life in Naples since making a £25 million move from Manchester United in the summer, quickly becoming an ever-present in Antonio Conte’s midfield.

McTominay profited on some dozy defending to coolly finish into the bottom corner in the 68th minute and put the result beyond doubt in Florence.

David Neres’ superb solo effort had given Napoli a half-time lead at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, with Moise Kean seeing a leveller ruled out for handball.

Some clumsy defending gave Romelu Lukaku the chance to convert a penalty after 54 minutes to double Napoli’s lead, the Belgian striker beating his former Man Utd team-mate David De Gea in the Fiorentina goal.

McTominay applied the finishing touch to seal a fourth straight win for Napoli, who moved three points clear on top of the table with 44 points from 19 games at the halfway stage of the season. 

Atalanta and Internazionale are three and four points behind respectively. Both are out of action this weekend in Serie A as they faced off in Saudi Arabia in the Supercoppa Italiana semi-finals on Thursday, which Inter won 2-0.

Atalanta have one game in hand over Napoli and Inter, who face AC Milan in the Supercoppa final on Monday, have two, meaning Napoli's mid-season lead is not guaranteed to stick.

But assistant coach Cristian Stellini put his side’s strong start in perspective, coming off the back of a disastrous title defence in 2023/24 when Napoli went through three coaches and finished 10th.

"We’re proud of what we are doing," Stellini told DAZN. "We have 44 points and that was unimaginable at the start of the season. We are hoping that we can continue to work this way."


Popular posts from this blog

Scotland beat Haiti 1-0 to mark a winning return to the World Cup

Image
 14 Jun 2026 A scrappy finish by John McGinn allowed Scotland to mark their return to the World Cup after a 28-year absence with a nervy 1-0 win over outsiders Haiti. Aston Villa captain McGinn fired in with the aid of a deflection just before the half-hour mark at the Gillette Stadium just outside Boston, which was filled to its 64,000 capacity with a majority of Scottish fans. They have travelled to the United States in large numbers to follow Scotland’s first World Cup campaign since 1998 and were able to celebrate a rare victory at the tournament as they go top of Group C. It is Scotland’s first win at a World Cup since a 2-1 defeat of Sweden in Italy in 1990, and their first victory at any major tournament in 30 years, since Euro 96. Steve Clarke’s team are bidding to make history by reaching the knockout stages, something Scotland have never done at the World Cup. They had to hang on grimly at the end, but the victory puts them on course to get to the last 32, especially as t...
Read more

Italian media make their feelings clear on Scott McTominay with new nickname for Napoli midfielder after four months in Serie A

Image
The Italian media have had they say on Scott McTominay just four months after he joined Napoli from Manchester United. Despite protests from Erik ten Hag, McTominay left United to join Napoli over the summer for a fee of £25.4 million after the club decided to sell the academy player in order to comply with profit and sustainability rules. Since joining the Italian side, the Scotsman has established himself as a central part of the side, regularly receiving praise from his teammates and fans of the club. And now, four months into his tenure at the Serie A, the Italian media have made their feelings about the midfielder clear, branding him with a new nickname. According to The Daily Star, the Italian media have been greatly impressed with Napoli's great start to the 2024/25 season and have credited McTominay as a key factor in this. So much so, that they have taken to describing the 28-year-old as "new Napoli leader", as shown by how both players and staff swarmed him to c...
Read more

Bank of Scotland unveils limited edition £20 banknote featuring Scott McTominay

Image
The hum of the Glasgow crowd had barely faded when the designers at the Bank of Scotland went to work. It was November 2025. Hampden Park had just witnessed history. With a thunderous strike in the dying minutes against Denmark, Scott McTominay had done the unthinkable—he had secured Scotland's spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In the weeks that followed, the bank decided that a standard commemorative coin simply wouldn't do for a moment of this magnitude. They wanted something that captured the raw energy of Scottish football. They decided to print money. But it couldn't be just any money; it had to be impossibly rare. Only 100 notes would ever leave the printing presses. On May 25, 2026, the wraps were pulled off the design. The front of the crisp polymer £20 note looks familiar, bearing the traditional portrait of Sir Walter Scott. But flip it over, and the note transforms into a piece of modern Scottish folklore. Towering over the iconic Glenfinnan Viaduct is a vivid ill...
Read more