Football

Lyndon Dykes urges Tartan Army to rally around struggling Scotland stars

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5 hours ago

October 13, 2024

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Lyndon Dykes urges Tartan Army to rally around struggling Scotland stars

LYNDON DYKES has promised fed-up Tartan Army troops: The good times are coming back.

The Scotland striker trudged away from Croatia on Saturday night crushed by a 2-1 loss that made it just one win in the last 15 games.

Dykes has sent a message to Scotland fansCredit: Kenny Ramsay

Scotland crumbled to another disappointing defeat on Saturday nightCredit: Kenny Ramsay

But he has asked fans to stick by the toiling team in Tuesday’s Hampden clash with Nations League table-toppers Portugal.

Dykes said: “I believe in trusting all my team-mates, the coaching staff, everyone, and I think it’s only a matter of time before we turn things around.

“It’s good that we have this game coming up so quickly. We don’t look like a team who are going to give up.

“We scored our goal, we looked dangerous.

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“But at the moment, it’s just not going for us. That’s football, it’s harsh.

“But we’re a massive family. Yet again the other night, the support from the travelling fans was amazing and the numbers were huge.

“That gives us an added determination to get things right.”

Dykes, 29, missed the Euros after suffering a freak training ground ankle injury and hasn’t scored for his country since the equaliser in the 2-1 win away to Norway in June 2023.

He has also yet to hit the net for new club Birmingham City since a £1million transfer window move, but the striker remains a big influence within Steve Clarke’s group and led the line in Zagreb after Che Adams fell ill.

Dykes said: “It’s tough when you’re on a run of not winning games.

Bill Leckie reacts to Scotland’s loss to Croatia

“But we’ve still got the same players in there, the same characters.

“We also know we can’t turn up against Portugal and just expect a result.

“We have to make sure we play as the team who did so well to get to this top level of the Nations League.”

They’re a team who simply can’t buy a win.

A team mired in football’s equivalent of a double-dip recession.

So all Dykes can hope is that Scotland have enough credit in the Tartan Army’s bank to see them through until the tide turns.

There’s only so long even the most one-eyed diehard will accept hard-luck stories as hard currency.

And the fact that we face Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal next does nothing to lift our collective confidence.

But hulking striker Dykes clings on to the memories of what players and punters pulled together to achieve so recently — and he believes if everyone else does the same we’ll come out of the red sooner rather than later.

Dykes said: “Football’s tough when you’re on a long run and you’re not winning games, especially after the results we had before, the way we changed how the Scotland side had been seen for years.

“So we’ve got to where we are on merit. It’s going to be tough, but we’re going to get through it.

“We’re a massive family. Yet again the other night, the support from the travelling fans was amazing, the numbers were huge. That gives us an added determination to get things right.

“We’ve still got the same players, the same characters, the same boys in there, plus some new ones who have been there and done it before against big teams.

It's been a difficult few months for Clarke and his team — It’s been a difficult few months for Clarke and his teamCredit: Kenny Ramsay

“This is when it shows the character of the boys.

“We’ve got massive characters in that dressing room, so I’m sure it will turn around.

“I believe in trusting all my team-mates, coaching staff, everyone, and I think it’s only a matter of time until we turn it around. We’ve done it before and we can do it again.

“We’ve done so well to get into this top seeding and we always thought we could compete in this top Nations League group, 100 per cent.

“But we’re playing against top teams every camp now.

“It’s not going away, there are no teams you should be beating easily, so everyone on the pitch, everyone in the squad, has to be on it.