Andy Murray led jubilant reaction to Scotland’s last gasp 4-2 win against Denmark which secured the side’s automatic qualification to the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Nothing less than a win was needed at Hampden Park on Tuesday evening, and the hosts started the night off on the right foot after Scott McTominay scored an eye-popping overhead kick goal inside the first three minutes.
Scotland continued to hold onto their lead for the remainder of the first-half, but were pulled back after conceding a penalty, which fellow former Manchester United man Rasmus Hojlund coolly converted from the spot.
Steve Clarke’s players were given a reprieve when Denmark went down to 10 men after Rasmus Kristensen received a second yellow card and sent off, with Laurence Shankland finally netting the breakthrough goal in the 78th minute.
Current Man United defender Patrick Dorgu looked to break hearts however, equalising for Denmark for the second time with just eight minutes left of normal time to play.
As the match ticked into injury time, former Arsenal star Kiernan Tierney scored the second show-stopping goal of the evening, and appeared to all but confirm his side’s place at the finals – only for his team-mate Kenny McLean to rubber-stamp it with a scarcely believable goal from just over the half-way line.
And as the players celebrated wildly on the pitch, famous fans of the Tartan Army took to social media to share their excitement at having qualified.
‘Yessssssssssssssssssss! Never in doubt Scotland (Scottish flag emoji),’ Murray posted on X. ‘North America here we come (red heart emoji).’
The two-time Wimbledon champion had likely been watching with his heart in his mouth, having previously posted in the wake of McTominay’s opening wonder-goal.
‘What an earth was that (multiple love-heart-eyes emojis),’ Murray shared with his followers. ‘McTominay you wee dancer!’
Comedian Kevin Bridges also showed his pride in the team’s achievements, posting: ‘Genuinely can’t see anyone other than Scotland winning this World Cup. What a team man.’
Chelsea star Erin Cuthbert, who features for Scotland’s women’s team, wrote her own missive, saying: ‘SCOTLAND ARE GOING TO THE WORLD CUP (multiple weeping emojis’.
Deadline Day guru Jim White shared a snap of the message screened around Hampden Park which stated ‘World Cup here we come’, captioning it: ‘You bet we are! Proud to be Scottish (trophy emoji)’.
Piers Morgan expressed a similar emotion, sharing a picture of himself dressed in a kilt and sporran.
‘Never felt more Scottish (Scottish flag emoji),’ he wrote
Murray has form supporting his national team’s qualifying success, with the three-time Grand Slam champion previously sharing a video of himself celebrating Scotland’s qualification for the European Championship in 2021.
A proud Scotsman, Murray found himself in hot water briefly at the start of his career after he joked that he planned on supporting ‘anyone but England’ in the 2006 World Cup, after his nation had failed to qualify.
Murray later stressed that he had been teasing, and that he was in no way anti-English as a response to the backlash.
Scotland’s success on home soil marks the first time that the nation have qualified for a World Cup since 1998, when Craig Brown as head coach oversaw the team’s turn in the group stage.
