Grant Hanley dismisses 'ridiculous' comparison as Scotland defender admits 'no excuses' for latest World Cup flop

Grant Hanley insists there were no mitigating factors in Scotland’s miserable display as they saw yet another World Cup qualifying dream end in despair on Wednesday night.

The 3-1 defeat to Ukraine at Hampden means Scotland’s painful exile from the finals stage of international football’s greatest tournament will now extend to at least 28 years.

It was the third failed World Cup qualifying campaign Hanley has been involved in since breaking into the senior squad and the 30-year-old defender did not attempt to disguise the depth of his dismay.

While the play-off semi-final came at the end of a long and gruelling domestic season for many of the Scottish players, Hanley dismissed any notion that played a part in the comprehensive loss to a slick and intensely-motivated Ukrainian side.

“I don’t think we’ll make any excuses like that,” he said. “We’re professionals and we prepare as professionals.

“I certainly won’t be making any excuses personally like that. It is what it is, we didn’t perform to the level we wanted.

“It's very disappointing for us. It’s really hard to speak about it and it’s obviously still quite raw.

“We’re disappointed we never really got going in the game until a wee bit of a spell later on.

A downcast Grant Hanley applauds the fans after Scotland's 3-1 defeat by Ukraine in the World Cup play-off semi-final at Hampden. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)

“But even then at 2-1, we never really felt like we were building the pressure and really forced them.

“It’s football and that happens and at this level especially – but any level – if you don’t really turn up and don’t have one of your good nights then you’re going to struggle.

“It felt like that’s what happened to us on Wednesday night. We never got it right, we weren’t quite at it for whatever reason. That’s the reason the game went the way it did.”

It was another major blow for Hanley in a season which also saw him relegated from the English Premier League with Norwich City but he railed against the suggestion there were any parallels in the two experiences.

Scotland defender Grant Hanley tussles for possession with Ukraine striker Roman Yaremchuk during the World Cup play-off semi-final at Hampden. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

“They don’t quite compare,” he said. “It’s football and disappointments happen. You go with the highs and the lows and that’s football. It would be ridiculous to compare it.

“This was a World Cup play-off match and if you get beat, it’s gone. It’s tough to take.”

Hanley will now look to add to his 43 caps as Scotland turn their attention to the start of their UEFA Nations League campaign against Armenia at Hampden next week, a competition with valuable play-off places for the Euro 2024 finals in Germany up for grabs.

Despite the lingering disappointment of missing out on Qatar 2022, Hanley believes they can utilise it as motivation to bounce back quickly.

“Of course we can,” he said. “Football moves quickly and you’ve got to move with it otherwise you get left behind.

“We’ve got a squad in the dressing-room capable of qualifying for major tournaments. We’ll let this one sink in, dust ourselves down and we’ll go again.

“Obviously the World Cup has gone but the next one is the Euros so that’ll be our focus. We’re professionals so it’s up to us to recover from this and be ready again for the next game - which we will be.”

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