Roy Keane has shut down Scotland's calls for two penalties in their 1-0 loss to Morocco at the FIFA World Cup 2026, insisting Scott McTominay was simply "looking to go down" when he hit the turf in the box.

Steve Clarke's side arrived at Foxborough knowing a win would seal their place in the knockout stages — a milestone Scotland have never achieved at a World Cup — but those ambitions were hit almost immediately when Ismail Saibari struck after just 70 seconds, the earliest goal Scotland have conceded on the World Cup stage.

Keane's verdict on the penalty calls

Speaking on ITV, Keane was unequivocal in dismissing both appeals. "I don't think it's a penalty, he's looking to go down," the former midfielder said of the McTominay incident. "It's a physical game. The referee let a lot go in the game, players were going down which would normally be a free-kick. So the referee had that attitude throughout the game, especially in the box."

The first appeal came shortly after half-time, when John McGinn appeared to be brought down by Neil El Aynaoui inside the penalty area. Officials waved it away. McTominay, the Napoli midfielder, then went to ground under a challenge from El Aynaoui in a second incident that again went unpunished.

Clarke defended the calls after the match: "Everybody is talking about the Scott McTominay incident. I actually looked at the John McGinn one, which was 50-50. Some referees would give it, some don't. Sometimes VAR will get involved."

Clarke proud despite a damaging defeat

Morocco — ranked sixth in the world and reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions — showed their quality from the first whistle and held on comfortably despite Scotland's determined second-half push.

Clarke was candid about the opening goal: "I wish we could start again! We lost a poor goal, we tried to step up when you want to track runners early in the game. We didn't defend it well, and that's why we went 1-0 down."

The Scotland manager did, however, find encouragement in his side's second-half display. "I thought in the second period of the first half after the hydration break, we were good. We had good momentum and carried that into the second half and had a right go," he said. "I'm proud of the players but we're all devastated and disappointed we didn't get the result we wanted."

Scotland still harbour hopes of reaching the last 32. Having beaten Haiti in their opening Group C fixture, Clarke's side sit on three points. A draw against Brazil in Miami next week would significantly improve their chances of making history in a knockout stage they have never before reached.