It wouldn’t be unfair to say that as word filtered around Hampden just before kick-off on Tuesday evening that John Souttar had picked up an injury and had been replaced by Grant Hanley at the heart of the Scotland defence, the development hardly settled the jangling nerves of the Tartan Army.
The 33-year-old has been a fine servant for his country over the piece, but had turned in a shaky performance in Piraeus on Saturday evening as the Scots shipped three goals in defeat to Greece, and there was a reason therefore he had been dropped to the bench.
They needn’t have worried. The big man slotted in alongside Scott McKenna and barely put a foot wrong. And although the Danes scored from the spot and conjured a late equaliser through Patrick Dorgu that threatened to spoil the party, both he and McKenna guarded Craig Gordon resolutely throughout.
Hanley has often been an underappreciated member of Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad from the outside, but within the dressing room, nothing could be further from the truth.
“Of course it was a concern [when John had to pull out so late], but Grant is one of the most experienced players in this team and one of the most calming players to play next to,” McKenna said.
“It's testament to him to be ready at such short notice to come in and play the way he did, obviously handling a very tough striker [Rasmus Hojlund] one-on-one numerous times.
“Obviously, we conceded two, which is disappointing, but for Grant to step in the way he did was fantastic.
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“It's always an honour to come back here and have the opportunity to play and be part of the squad. On Tuesday the manager showed faith in me to play me [too], and I think everyone that was on the pitch at any point in the game just wanted to try and do it for him and how much confidence he's had in us as a squad over the last six years.
“It was a massive achievement to go to the Euros for the first time in 25 years then great to do it again. But the World Cup is for all of the world. I think the World Cup most people would agree is on the next level.
“We really want to go there and feel we can have a real impact. The way it went last summer we were slightly disappointed. When the summer comes, hopefully we'll be ready to try and get some points on the board and take it a step further.”
A common theme when speaking to the heroes of Hampden in the aftermath of the Denmark game was that the magnitude of what Scotland have achieved has yet to sink in. But the feat of topping their group certainly shouldn’t be diminished by dint of the fact that the World Cup has now expanded to 48 teams.
Scotland, after all, topped their group, so while Clarke’s detractors in particular seized upon the notion that ‘it has never been easier to qualify’ to talk down the feat of making it to the European Championships, it is harder for them to take the shine off this accomplishment.
Scotland were the only pot three team to top their section, with Norway – from pot two – the only other UEFA team not from pot one to win their group and qualify automatically.
It seems Clarke himself was aware of the significance, and pressed it home to his men.
“The gaffer said it's the first time since 1982 qualifying campaign since we topped the group to go to the World Cup,” McKenna said.
“So, it's a testament to the squad. Obviously at times over these six games we've had to dig in, performances haven't been there, but the most important thing is the collective and we managed to get the points on the board.
“My phone absolutely blew up after the game. I think everyone's probably did with all the messages and just how proud everyone is in this squad and as a nation for what we managed to achieve.
“It sounds incredible. It doesn't sound real. It was a mad game that ended up getting us there and one that was in our own hands, then we threw away, then we threw it away [again] when they were down to 10 men, but we managed to bring it back with an excellent finish by KT.
“And then right at the end, the awareness of Kenny. He came on after 20 minutes but to have the presence of mind to have a shot from there and seal the game for us was incredible.
“I've played in some mad games, probably not too many like that where I've come out on the right side. I would have hated to be a fan. If it was bad looking on the pitch, being a fan and watching that whether in the stadium or at home, must have been horrific.
“But thankfully, we got there in the end, and we all managed to celebrate together.”
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