Andy Robertson admitted Scotland were deservedly beaten by Ukraine as their World Cup dreams ended for another four years.
It’s 24 years since Scotland last appeared at a World Cup and there was hope that run would come to an end this time, after last summer’s appearance at the Euros.
But the Scots will not be in Qatar at the end of the year, as they fell to a 3-1 defeat against Ukraine at Hampden Park in the play-off semi-final after producing a lacklustre performance.
The hosts picked their levels up slightly after falling 2-0 down and halved the deficit through Callum McGregor, threatening a grandstand finish, but Ukraine finished the job on the counter with the final kick of the match.
While Ukraine now travel to Cardiff to play Wales for a place at the World Cup, Scotland’s wait goes on and they will reflect on a missed opportunity after such a below-par display.
“Hugely disappointing, we’ve waited a long time for this game,” Robertson told Sky Sports.
“Our performances before this game were really good, but today we didn’t really show up. Ukraine settled into the game quicker than us, and it kind of continued.
“We knew they were going to get tired, and that was the case, but we gave ourselves too much of an uphill battle. We didn’t play the way we wanted to play, and that’s the most disappointing thing.
“It’s passed us by now, and after a really positive campaign, we’ve let ourselves down tonight. We have to hurt, reflect, that’s the World Cup gone for another four years, and that’s really harsh.
“But we have to stick together as a group. All we can say is sorry to the fans for disappointing them, but we’ll dust ourselves down and go again.”
