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Hampden Park has witnessed numerous unforgettable occasions over its long history since 1903. Include this game to the record. The Scottish protracted drought has concluded. Steve Clarke, the captain, Scott McTominay, John McGinn; they will be at the World Cup. Along with them the defender, whose bending effort from distance appeared to clinched success in a five-goal thriller until Kenny McLean executed an still more breathtaking final goal.

Almost 30 years of heartache, during which the Scottish men's team have seen the global tournament from the sidelines, were erased as Denmark suffered a loss in injury time. Supporters in traditional dress wept. Denmark's qualification in the upcoming event hinges on March playoffs. The coach and a now ecstatic football nation can start making definite plans.

PhD students could develop papers on how on earth Scotland achieved this. They appeared finished at points, no more recently than Saturday when suffering a loss in Greece. It was like destiny had predetermined the Scots had waited long enough for a place in the tournament. The contributions of the defender and McLean were extraordinary.

The Game Kicks Off

The evening had apparently opened in tough circumstances for the home side. John Souttar, who had been scheduled to partner Scott McKenna in defense, was hurt in the warmup. Grant Hanley took his place. Any sense of setback was banished within the first few minutes.

This was one of the most spectacular goals scored at the stadium in living memory.

The winger maneuvered on the right. His floated cross was expected to be challenging for the midfielder to handle. He was with his back to the net, to begin with. Rather, McTominay catapulted himself into the sky and executed an overhead kick beyond the grasp of the goalkeeper. This historic old place roared, not simply in acknowledgment of the early lead but the unique circumstances in which it arrived. Amazing.

Midfield Struggle

McTominay was playing like a man possessed. Gannon-Doak appeared electric. Scottish offense was evident in pushing forward too ferociously; Craig Gordon blocked from the Danish striker after the opposition striker was through on goal. The offside flag was up but Højlund could have been onside a second check if it had been necessary. As Mikkel Damsgaard sent a cross across the Scottish area and the defender deflected well from another attacker, the home side were in a battle to keep their lead.

The winger had panicked the Danes with his quickness. It felt a major loss to the manager, then, as the player strained when attempting to block a pass. He left the pitch on a stretcher after just the first half.

Højlund shortly had the ball in the goal but was called for a foul on the defender. By the 30-minute mark, the team were living far too recklessly, a fact further emphasised as the defender turned a midfielder drive narrowly wide. Yet they reached the break still ahead. They were even denied of a great chance of a additional goal, a Danish defender smartly taking out McGinn, receiving a booking, after the player capitalised on Danish carelessness.

Final Period Drama

Højlund forced Gordon into a quick, low save in the opening moments of the restart. If the Scots were going to do this, 45 minutes would be like the long wait since the tournament. Considering Denmark only needed a tie, the flow of traffic from the onset of the half felt worrying for the hosts. Scotland were managing – somewhat – in breaking up Danish attacks but promptly giving the ball back to the players in the away kit.

As the equaliser arrived, it came with the whiff of cordite associated.

The referee originally saw no foul with the captain's challenge on Gustav Isaksen on the edge of the penalty area. In fact, it seemed the player went down into the air. After being instructed to look again by the VAR, the referee awarded the penalty spot. Højlund smashed home. On the overall play, the equalizer was the least the away side earned but Scotland had reason to be sore about the circumstances.

Late Drama

All this exciting game was missing was a sending off. It arrived on the hour, Kristensen second foul of the night on a marauding McGinn earning a second yellow card. Then Clarke twisted by throwing on the strikers one substitute and Che Adams.

The move was to prove effective. Denmark's defending of an inswinging Lewis Ferguson set piece was shambolic, letting Shankland to finish. The Hearts frontman, introduced for his attacking prowess, produced exactly that. The opposition manager the coach, however, had cause to be angry at how easy it was.

Scotland had little time to build on their advantage. Within three minutes, a Danish player slotted into the net after Andreas Christensen passed into his way 12 yards from goal. This time Scotland were too careless.

The striker flicked a shot off target. McGinn bending shot narrowly missed the upright. Then came the defender and a moment fit to win the game. The substitute added gloss: from the halfway line, indeed.