Roy Keane dismissed Scotland’s penalty appeals in their 1-0 defeat to Morocco, highlighting that he felt Scott McTominay “was looking to go down”.
Steve Clarke’s side knew victory would guarantee a place in the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time, but they were rocked after just 70 seconds when Ismail Saibari struck.
John McGinn appealed for a penalty not long after the restart after being brought down by Neil El Aynaoui, but it was deemed a fair challenge.
There was more penalty controversy when the Napoli midfielder McTominay went down under another dubious challenge from El Aynaou. But, again, the appeals were waved away.
Keane said on ITV: “I don’t think it’s a penalty, he’s looking to go down. It’s a physical game. The referee let a lot go in the game, players were going down which would normally be a free-kick. So the referee had that attitude throughout the game especially in the box.”
Scotland boss Steve Clarke said: “Everybody is talking about the Scott McTominay [penalty incident]. I actually looked at the John McGinn one, which was 50-50. Some referees would give it, some don’t. Sometimes VAR will get involved.”
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Clarke: I wish we could’ve started again!
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Scotland head coach Steve Clarke reacts to their World Cup defeat to Morocco.
After beating Haiti in their Group C opener, Clarke’s side needed only a draw against the AFCON champions at the Boston Stadium to all-but guarantee a spot in the knockout stages.
However, Morocco showed why they are ranked sixth in the world, scoring through Saibari after 70 seconds – the earliest goal Scotland have conceded at a World Cup, on their return to the big stage after 28 years.
Scotland could still reach the last 32 if they finish on three points but a draw against Brazil in Miami next week would significantly boost their chances of a first-ever appearance in the knockout stage.
On the Morocco goal, Clarke said: “I wish we could start again! We lost a poor goal, we tried to step up when you want to track runners early in the game. We didn’t defend it well, and that’s why we went 1-0 down.
“I thought in the second period of the first half after the hydration break, we were good. We were good in the game, we had good momentum and carried that into the second half and had a right go.
“I’m proud of the players but we’re all devastated and disappointed we didn’t get the result we wanted to carry on in this tournament as long as we can.”
