Clarke concedes Greece comeback flattered Scotland as World Cup dream edges closer
Scotland ensured they stayed level on points with Denmark in Group C after coming from behind to stun Greece 3-1 in a World Cup qualifier.
Steve Clarke conceded that Scotland's comeback victory over Greece flattered his side but was pleased to see his players find their spark after going a goal behind.
Scotland edged closer to securing a World Cup play-off place with a 3-1 triumph over Greece at Hampden Park, despite being outplayed by their opponents for the majority.
Greece took a deserved lead in the 62nd minute when Kostas Tsimikas drilled the ball into the bottom-left corner after Scotland failed to deal with Vangelis Pavlidis' initial shot.
However, their advantage lasted just two minutes as Ryan Christie restored parity with a calm finish, with his equaliser eventually awarded following a lengthy VAR check.
Lewis Ferguson then slammed Scotland ahead 10 minutes from time following a scrappy free-kick, but Clarke's team ensured the win midway through stoppage time.
A huge error from goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis handed substitute Lyndon Dykes the simplest of tasks to plant the ball into the roof of the net to cap a fine turnaround.
But Greece's dominance was backed up by the metrics, registering an expected goals (xG) total of 1.7 from their 15 shots to Scotland's 1.3 from eight attempts.
If Scotland defeat Belarus, who were thrashed 6-0 by Denmark on Thursday, in their next match and Greece fail to beat Brian Riemer's side, Clarke's men will be guaranteed one of the top two places in the group, ensuring at worst they will be in the play-offs for the finals next summer.
And while pleased with the character shown by his players, the Scotland boss acknowledged improvements were needed before Sunday's clash at Hampden Park.
"On the performance side of it, you have to understand how hard we worked out of possession," Clarke said.
"When they scored the goal, the shackles came off a bit, and from there we finished the game strong.
"The Greeks had a lot of the ball in the first half, but they weren't carving us open.
"Football is a 90-minute game, and you have to make sure you come out of it with a positive result. 3-1 maybe flatters us, but we did enough to win the game.
"It gives us three points and takes us one step closer to what we want to do.
"Lewis Ferguson and Ryan Christie both miss out. Aaron Hickey has picked up a small injury, so I've got a bit of thinking to do.
"We can only concentrate on ourselves. We have to win here and see what the situation is after that."
