Pocognoli's Scotland Look for Their First Home Win on Friday

Scotland host North Macedonia on Friday, and head coach Sebastien Pocognoli is still waiting for his first home win in charge.

The match will be his third home game in the job. His side have lost their first two at home, scoring one goal and conceding five. The first of those defeats, against Switzerland, came after Jack Hendry was sent off early. A red card means a player is dismissed and his team must play the rest of the game a man down.

Scotland's most recent game was a 2-0 win away in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. It was Pocognoli's third match in charge, and it came after a loss to Slovenia that left the squad under scrutiny. Scotland captain Andy Robertson said his team had been out-played and out-fought in that game. Out-fought means they lost the battles for the ball and the physical contests that decide games.

Pocognoli did not hide from the criticism. After the Slovenia game he said: "We were not intense. We were not aggressive." He has since accepted the scrutiny as part of the job. "Criticism is part of the business as a coach," he said. "It's just about rebounding."

Scott McTominay, Kieran Tierney and Che Adams all missed the trip to Skopje but are available for the return. McTominay is a midfielder and Tierney a left-sided defender, so both could change the balance of the side. Adams is a striker, and he has scored twice in five games in Italy since he last played for Scotland.

The Scottish FA has confirmed two changes to the squad. David Bates has returned to the group, while Luis Binks has withdrawn.

For Scotland fans, the picture is simple. The team won away and now need to show the same edge at home. A home win on Friday would take some of the heat off a coach who has heard plenty of noise since the start of his spell. A repeat of the first two home games would put the pressure right back on him.