Scotland bounced back from a goal down to defeat Greece 3-1 and give the national team’s World Cup qualifying hopes a major boost.
Kostas Tsimikas had given Greece the lead just after the hour mark but Scotland hit back instantly with a Ryan Christie equaliser.
Lewis Ferguson gave the hosts the lead after 78 minutes and Lyndon Dykes scored in injury time to cap off a remarkable turnaround on a dramatic night at the national stadium.
Scotland were looking to build on a promising start to the six-game campaign, having drawn in Denmark and defeated Belarus in Hungary in the last international double-header.
Clarke’s starting line-up didn’t hold many surprises, with Andy Robertson and Aaron Hickey both fit to start in the full-back positions, and Che Adams given the nod to start ahead of Lyndon Dykes with Ryan Christie and Ben Gannon Doak in support of the striker.
Greece showed their danger in the early exchanges and passed up a glorious opportunity for the opener when Christos Tzolis flashed a ball across goal and Tasos Bakasetas was inches away from knocking into an open goal.
After 20 minutes, stats showed Greece having three times as many completed passes as Scotland, reflecting the general balance of play but there had been few clear-cut chances and it remained that way until half-time. Boos showed the Tartan Army’s verdict on Scotland’s timid performance so far.
There was little changed after the break and Giorgois Masouras blazed a shot over bar as the visitors pressed for the opener. They got it after 62 minutes.
An attack down the right led to a cross into the box that wasn’t dealt with and Tsimikas rifled a shot through a group of players and past Angus Gunn.
The goal sparked a response from Scotland and they were level moments later. A corner led to Anthony Ralston lifting the ball back into the box and after Grant Hanley flicked a header on, Christie put the ball over the line and Hampden erupted.
With twelve minutes to go, what looked like an unlikely point suddenly became a possible three. Greece failed to deal with an Andy Robertson cross in towards goal and Ferguson lashed a shot high into the net.
Greece pushed for an equaliser and left gaps but the result was sealed in the first of six injury time minutes when Greece goalkeeper Kostas Tzolakis spilled the ball and Dykes snapped up the chance to shoot into an empty net.
The result leaves Scotland with seven points from three games ahead of Sunday’s match against a Belarus side that lost 6-0 to group leaders Denmark.
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