Given the drama of the chaotic second half against Poland, the fact that Scotland started the evening with a marked change of line-up was almost lost in the madness.
The three-back system favoured by Steve Clarke for so long was finally shelved and in the eyes of his weary supporters the change came none too soon.
One can only wonder what the outcome of the final match of the European Championship this summer against Hungary would have been if Clarke had made the same decision.
Without Kieran Tierney, for whom the back-three system was designed, and in a must-win game, only Clarke will know why he held on against Hungary. But that’s besides the point.
The switch to a four-man defence against Poland was a sign that something new needed to be tried, at least in terms of form, but not necessarily in terms of personnel.
Scotland started the match with four central midfielders on the pitch: Billy Gilmour, Scott McTominay, Kenny McLean and John McGinn.
Former Juventus and Chelsea manager Antonio Conte took charge of Napoli this summer
Scott McTominay has swapped Manchester United for the 2022-23 Serie A champions
Billy Gilmour is paraded in front of fans at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona
It is no state secret that the main strength of the Scottish selection in recent years has been in midfield.
Even with Callum McGregor retired after the European Championships, Clarke still has plenty of options at his disposal in midfield.
The key to success now is finding the right balance between midfield and attack, rather than trying to cram everyone into the same team.
McGinn and McTominay will certainly play every game if fit, and the same can probably be said for Gilmour as the team’s main playmaker now that McGregor is gone.
Which makes McLean the odd one out. Rarely has the inclusion of one player in a starting line-up caused such a sense of deflation to an entire fanbase as McLean’s did against Poland.
Looking ahead, it would be very refreshing to opt for a midfield of three, consisting of Gilmour, McGinn and McTominay, with two wingers supporting the striker.
Let’s say a Ryan Christie and a Ben Doak on either side of Lyndon Dykes. Granted, it sounds pretty risqué by Clarke’s standards, but there’s no reason it couldn’t work.
The problem arises because Clarke wants to use McGinn and McTominay more often in attack.
But they are both experienced international players. There is no reason why they can’t work well together. If one leaves, the other stays.
With Gilmour dictating play from deep behind them, they have the makings of a well-rounded midfield. What happens at Napoli in the coming months could well affect how Clarke deploys Gilmour and McTominay, with both players securing a bumper move to Naples late in the transfer window for a combined fee of almost £50m.
Neither Gilmour nor McTominay are expected to join Napoli simply to boost numbers or sit on the bench. They are expected to play and make a big impact in Antonio Conte’s team, which is looking to rebuild after the departure of a number of big names in recent seasons.
This is where Scotland could benefit greatly from Conte’s coaching if he can get the best out of both players. If you look at some of Conte’s best teams over the years, central midfield is an area where some of his best players have flourished.
When he was in charge of Juventus, Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba excelled. Pirlo became the best deep-lying playmaker in the business, a regista as it is called in Italy, a role not dissimilar to that of Scotland’s diminutive maestro Gilmour.
The same goes for McTominay; his ferocious box-to-box runs resemble those of Pogba in Turin when he was at his peak.
Listen, no one would argue that Gilmour is suddenly the new Pirlo and McTominay the new Pogba, but there are similarities in terms of the type of players Conte will be working with.
Gilmour and McTominay both scored in Scotland’s midweek defeat to Poland
Callum McGregor recently announced his retirement from international duty
When he was in charge of Chelsea, N’Golo Kante and Cesc Fabregas played crucial roles in the team that won the Premier League title in 2017.
If Conte can find a way to create a midfield around Gilmour and McTominay in Naples, there is no reason why Scotland cannot do the same.
That Neapolitan connection will be vital going forward as McGinn forms the third member of the midfield.
McTominay was Scotland’s best player against Poland, bursting forward from midfield and causing all sorts of problems.
It seems almost ridiculous now to think that this is a player who has been used as a centre-back at times in the past, he offers a dynamic presence and a great goal threat, just like McGinn.
Gilmour could be the glue that holds everything together. Like McTominay, he also had a good game against Poland. His passing was sharp and crisp, and despite the pressure from Poland he kept claiming the ball.
The problem is that Scotland haven’t really used him enough. Gilmour completed just 54 passes on the night, which ranks him fifth in terms of distribution channels in Scotland. That’s not enough for a player who is clearly our best passer and the most capable player we have to dictate a game.
The best playmakers in these deep positions are trusted by their coach and teammates, often finishing with close to 100 passes in a game.
Scotland aren’t there yet with Gilmour, but that’s more to do with Clarke’s reluctance to build from the back and play through the lines. With Conte, you suspect he’ll have more freedom to get the ball and dictate.
It promises to be an intriguing adventure in Serie A, one that Scotland should take advantage of.
