Steve Clarke arrived at the 2026 FIFA World Cup declaring himself a changed man, but Scotland's numbers on the global stage tell a familiar — and troubling — story.

With just one goal scored across three group matches, Clarke's side stand on the verge of another first-round exit, echoing their exits at the previous two major tournaments without reaching the knockout stage.

The attacking numbers

At Euro 2024, Scotland managed only 17 shots across their three games — the joint-fewest by any nation since the group stage was introduced in 1980. The 2026 World Cup has offered little improvement.

As group play nears its end, no team at the tournament has scored fewer goals per match than Scotland. They share that unwanted distinction with Curacao, a side ranked 41 places below them in the global standings and making their World Cup debut.

Clarke's side have also underperformed their expected goals figure by 1.6, and they rank alongside Curacao and Haiti for shots on target per game — only eight of the 48 competing nations average fewer.

After John McGinn opened the scoring against Haiti on matchday one, Scotland went 200 minutes without registering another shot on target. That drought ended only with a Scott McTominay header in the 49th minute against Brazil.

Formation changes, familiar frustrations

Unlike at Euro 2024 — when Clarke drew heavy criticism for stubbornly sticking to a back five — the Scotland head coach has rotated his system across all three fixtures. A 4-4-2 was used against Haiti, while variations of a 4-2-3-1 were deployed against Morocco and Brazil, with Kieran Tierney and Ben Gannon-Doak featuring in different wide roles.

On paper, the lineups looked progressive. In practice, execution let Scotland down repeatedly.

The 1-0 win over Haiti was nervy throughout, and Clarke dismissed suggestions that his side should have won more comfortably as