Scotland’s return to Hampden Park ended in frustration on Tuesday as Switzerland recorded a 3–0 victory in the UEFA Nations League, with an early dismissal for Jack Hendry changing the game before Scotland had a chance to settle.
The defeat was a particularly difficult night for new Scotland head coach Sébastien Pocognoli, who was taking charge of his first competitive home match. Switzerland, meanwhile, followed up their opening-day 3–0 victory over North Macedonia with another convincing result in Group B1.
Hendry’s red card changes everything
Scotland began positively, pressing Switzerland aggressively in the opening minutes. But the game was turned on its head in the eighth minute.
Switzerland’s Dan Ndoye broke into the Scottish half and was brought down by Jack Hendry. Referee Nenad Minakovic initially awarded a penalty and showed Hendry a yellow card, but a VAR review established that the foul had occurred outside the penalty area.
The penalty was therefore overturned, but the yellow card was upgraded to a red, leaving Scotland with ten men after barely ten minutes.
It was a devastating sequence for the hosts.
And Switzerland immediately made the numerical advantage count.
Rodríguez produces a superb free-kick
With the penalty decision overturned, Switzerland instead received a free-kick just outside the area.
Ricardo Rodríguez stepped up and curled a superb effort beyond Angus Gunn and into the top-left corner.
The goal came only minutes after Hendry’s dismissal and meant Scotland were suddenly facing a one-goal deficit while playing with ten men.
Pocognoli reacted immediately, replacing Kieron Bowie with Stephen Welsh as Scotland attempted to reorganise their defence.
Despite being a man down, Scotland did not simply surrender.
Andy Robertson and John McGinn tried to push the team forward, while Billy Gilmour looked for opportunities to progress the ball. Scotland generated a number of corners and attacking situations before half-time, but Switzerland’s defence dealt with them.
Switzerland pull away after half-time
The second half initially offered Scotland some hope, but Switzerland gradually began to exploit the extra man more effectively.
Their second goal arrived in the 55th minute.
Ndoye again played a central role, working his way down the right before delivering a low cross into the penalty area. Nico Elvedi arrived to guide the ball into the far corner and double Switzerland’s advantage.
At 2–0, Scotland’s task became considerably harder.
Pocognoli responded with a triple substitution just before the hour, bringing on Ben Gannon-Doak, Ryan Christie and Robbie Ure in an attempt to inject more attacking energy.
Scotland goalkeeper Gunn then prevented the deficit from becoming even larger, making important saves in the 66th and 71st minutes as Switzerland continued to create opportunities.
Amdouni completes the scoring
The third goal eventually arrived in the 82nd minute.
Ndoye was involved once again, cutting the ball back for Zeki Amdouni, who unleashed a powerful strike beyond Gunn.
It completed a 3–0 victory for Switzerland and capped a highly influential performance from Ndoye, who contributed to both of Switzerland’s second-half goals.
Scotland continued to look for a consolation goal, with McGinn producing some promising work down the left late on, but Switzerland comfortably protected their clean sheet.
A difficult night for Pocognoli
The result leaves Pocognoli still waiting for his first victory as Scotland manager.
His reign had begun with a 0–0 draw against Slovenia four days earlier. Scotland had shown greater attacking intent after half-time in that match, but failed to find the net. Against Switzerland, the early red card made the challenge significantly more difficult.
The bigger concern is Scotland’s lack of attacking output. They have now gone through another match without scoring, while Switzerland have begun their Nations League campaign with consecutive 3–0 victories.
There was at least one notable personal milestone for Scotland: Andy Robertson earned his 99th international cap at Hampden.
What comes next?
Scotland now travel to North Macedonia on October 3, before returning to Hampden to face Slovenia on October 6. They will also face Switzerland again away from home in November.
Switzerland, meanwhile, have made an ideal start to Group B1, following their opening victory in North Macedonia with another three-goal win.
For Scotland, the defining image of the evening will remain Hendry’s early dismissal. The hosts had started with energy, but playing almost 80 minutes with ten men against a Switzerland side already in good form proved an enormous obstacle.
