ANDY ROBERTSON revealed he couldn’t stop thinking about Diogo Jota as Scotland secured a place at the World Cup on an emotional night.
The Scottish captain played the full game at Hampden Park against Denmark as the home side secured a sensational 4-2 win.
Speaking to BBC Sport on the pitch at full-time, Robertson revealed former team-mate Jota had been on his mind throughout the day.
He said: “I’ve hid it well, but today I’ve been in bits.
“I know the age I’m at, this could be my last chance to go to the World Cup.
“I couldn’t get my mate Diogo Jota out of my head today.
“We spoke so much about going to the World Cup. I know he’ll be smiling over me today. I’m so glad it’s ended up this way.”
Jota had been a key part of the Portugal squad which also ended up qualifying for next year’s major tournament under Roberto Martinez but shockingly died in a car crash in pre-season.
The attacker had won the Nations League with his country in June before his devastating crash.
His death is an ongoing obstacle for Liverpool and Portugal players to deal with and Robertson, who made 130 appearances with Jota, has been extremely hard hit by the incident.
He had something to celebrate on a crazy night in Glasgow but showed all of his class in the touching nod to Jota.
The 31-year-old continued: “That just sums up this squad. Never say die.
“We just keep going right to the end and one of the craziest games.
“We put the country through it, but I’m sure it’s worth it. We’re going to the World Cup.
“This group of boys, this group of staff – it’s the best group I’ve been involved in.
Steve Clarke‘s side took everyone on a rollercoaster journey but delivered one of the most memorable nights in their footballing history after reaching the World Cup for the first time in 28 years.
They looked to have blown the chance to automatically qualify after conspiring to throw away a 2-1 lead with nine minutes to go.
Kieran Tierney fired in a stoppage time winner to send them through to the group stages in America just moments after fans had been anticipating extra heartache.
The Scots overtook their opponents in Group C three times on the night including after Tierney’s last-gasp curler from outside the box.
That means they go straight to USA, Canada, and Mexico without needing a dramatic play-off in March next year.
Scotland may have won the game 4-2 thanks to two stunning stoppage time strikes but even that does little to describe the raw emotion of a historic night.
Scott McTominay had given the hosts an early lead with his remarkable overhead kick only for a Rasmus Hojlund penalty to level, leaving Denmark top of the group again after an hour.
Rasmus Kristensen was sent off shortly after, handing Scotland a huge advantage and that paid off when Lawrence Shankland fired in 12 minutes from time.
The curse of Manchester United and World Cup past struck again when Patrick Dorgu pegged Scotland back to leave a nation biting its nails.
Tierney came up with a goal for the ages to put his country on the edge of glory before Kenny McLean capped off a chaotic night with a goal from the halfway line to finish things off as Denmark pushed for a third equaliser.
The inspiration behind the win came from Clarke and a huge pre-game speech.
Robertson revealed: “The manager’s speech before the game was unbelievable.
“He went through the big moments we’ve had; Qualifying for the Euros – he couldn’t quite remember – we were in Wunderbar.
“He said: ‘let’s make it another one.’
“We were quite emotional. To do it for him, the staff and all our families, it’ll go down as one of the greatest nights of my life.”
It means that Scotland will join England at the World Cup in seven months whilst Wales have to go through the play-offs in March.
There, Scotland could draw Portugal and pit Robertson against the country of his former teammate.
‘What are you doing?’
Clarke, who appeared emotional, was able to joke about the madness after the game.
He said: “Scott McTominay scored the best overhead kick I’ve ever seen and it might not have been the best goal of the night!
“It was a lot of emotions. High and low. At times, you’re looking for solutions and thinking how to change it. I knew at some stage we’d have to go two up front.
“I felt the Danes were dominating us a little. It seemed like a good time [to make the changes]. Whether they were 10 or 11 [men], we were going to do that.
“I spoke to Kieran [Tierney] before the first game. He’s a key player for me, one of my men. I’ve got loads of them. 14 were involved in the play-off game.
“I said ‘listen, Aaron Hickey can’t do back-to-back games, I can see you coming on at right-back and doing very well for us’.
“I’m not sure I envisioned the goal… but when it was rolling back to him on his left foot, I knew he would score.
“When [Kenny] hit it, I thought ‘what are you doing?!’ but when I saw it in flight, I thought ‘that’s going to go in!’”
