JAMES McARTHUR insists under-fire boss Gordon Strachan got it right in Trnava and the players got it wrong.
The midfielder knows it will take something special to turn the World Cup group around after taking just one point from a miserable double-header.
But McArthur says Strachan is the man to make it happen, if all his hard work isn’t left behind in the dressing room.
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Crystal Palace ace McArthur, whose goal against Lithuania was the only bright spot on a rotten long weekend, said: “His plan against Slovakia worked and sloppy goals cost us.
“We controlled long spells and had opportunities and that was down to the gaffer’s game preparations. But those goals were the be all and end all.
“After Slovakia scored you just try to get on with it by creating more opportunities and by stopping them from playing. But they grew in confidence and looked fitter after their second goal.
“That knocked the stuffing out of us and when they got the third, it was game over.”
McArthur started at the expense of £15million winger Oliver Burke in Trnava, but couldn’t repeat his scoring heroics from Hampden.
Lithuania, who followed their Hampden point with a win over Malta, are now second behind England, with Slovenia in third place.
McArthur knows a big result at Wembley next month will be vital if Scotland are to retain realistic ambitions of reaching the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia.
He added: “We know we’re going to need to produce something special against England — a big result to get us back on track.
“But look at Ireland in our Euro 2016 group. They had a bad start and then produced two massive results and went on to qualify.
“We need to stay positive. I know it’s hard after we have just lost, but we still have an opportunity to put things right.
“You look at the table right now and, despite what I would call not a great start, it’s still very tight.”
Kieran Tierney was one of the few Scots to come away from the shambles of the City Arena with pass marks.
And it also seems the Celtic kid will be one of the few desperate to re-run the recording of the 3-0 loss and sit through it again.
The defeat was Tierney’s first competitive appearance for Scotland, but he will be desperate to stay in Strachan’s team for the Wembley trip on November 11.
Drafted in after regular left-back Andy Robertson failed a fitness test, the 19-year-old said: “It wasn’t good, but I will need time to watch it back and reflect on it.
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“From a personal point of view, I’m very happy about the manager putting faith in me, and I hope I can repay that.
“I think you need to look at the team performance, though. We know we can do better and we’re hoping we can next time.
“We just need to regroup, get together and keep our heads up. It’s going to be a long journey. There’s lots of games to play, and we have time to try and climb the table.”
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