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Scotland v Ukraine: The Moscow defeat that created Steve Clarke's resurgent side

Scotland's John McGinn and during the UEFA European Qualifier between Russia and Sctoland at the Luzhniki Stadium, on October 10, 2019, in Moscow, Russia.SNS Group

Steve Clarke changed his approach as Scotland boss following a 4-0 defeat by Russia in 2019

World Cup play-off semi-final: Scotland v Ukraine

Venue: Hampden Park, Glasgow Date: Wednesday, 1 June Time: 19:45 BST

Coverage: Listen to live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and Sportsound, and follow live text updates on the BBC Sport website & app

Two-and-half years ago Steve Clarke's Scotland tenure was already in serious jeopardy after only five games.

His team looked solid and structured for 55 minutes in Moscow against an efficient, if unspectacular, Russia side before conceding four goals in 27 minutes in a remarkable collapse.

Embarrassing. Folded like a pack of cards. Miles off what is needed at international level. Those were just some of the utterings from pundits after that 4-0 defeat.

Clarke himself was rocked by the display, saying: "We have to make sure this is the lowest of the low."

Thankfully for the Tartan Army, it was. Clarke reshaped, rebuilt and galvanised a national team that was previously consumed by failure and doubt.

Scotland are two games away from a first World Cup since 1998, which would be a second consecutive major tournament having ended their 23-year hiatus at Euro 2020 last year.

The Moscow defeat seems a lifetime ago and, though it was a forgettable night, proved to be the moment from which the past 30 months of relative success were born.

"That hurt me," Clarke said of the loss on the High Performance Podcast earlier this year. "I started to question myself a little bit and I was thinking, 'what am I going to do">