Scotland Stars Leave Hotel After Four Grueling Days, Suffer Heartbreaking Ninth World Cup Group Stage Exit

SCOTLAND’s World Cup squad were spotted looking down in the dumps as they finally began the long journey home from the US.

The team managed just three points from a difficult World Cup group, in which they were pitted against the likes of , and .

Scotland’s squad appeared dejected as they left their hotel base in the US Credit: PA The nation were knocked out as one of the four worst third-place finishers in the group stage Credit: PA

There was still hope that their three points and negative three goal difference would somehow be enough to see them qualify as one of the eight best third-place teams.

But , it was not to be, with ‘s 2-1 win over confirming that they would be .

Stars such as , Grant Hanley and Scott McKenna were seen glumly departing their hotel in Charlotte, North Carolina on Sunday, the day after the confirmation of their exit.

They had begun their first appearance at the tournament since 1998 with a 1-0 win over Haiti – though with two difficult fixtures ahead, some viewed the narrow margin as a missed opportunity to improve their goal difference.

Morocco stunned after just two minutes of their clash, with neither side able to find another breakthrough in the contest.

But it was Scotland’s battle with Brazil that really sank their hopes in the US.

Calamitous defending ruined any hopes of holding out for a goalless draw as Vinicius Junior tapped home into an open goal after Scott McKenna got caught on the ball.

The man added another just before half-time, before ‘s capped off a 3-0 victory to condemn the Tartan Army.

Premier League star John McGinn was amongst the departing stars Credit: PA As was Liverpool legend and Tottenham Hotspur signing Andy Robertson Credit: PA

The mood in the camp will likely have been made worse by the immediate resignation of head coach after the nation’s fate was confirmed.

The manager joined the squad in 2019 and became the longest-serving Scotland manager ever by measure of games played.

He even signed a new contract shortly before the World Cup that tied him to the role until 2030.

But that did not stop him from stepping down after missing out on the chance to make it to the knockouts in the competition for the first time in their history.

Scotland have never reached a World Cup knockout stage Credit: PA Aaron Hickey and Manchester United starlet Tyler Fletcher struggled to make an impact with limited gametime Credit: PA Lawrence Shankland experienced more heartbreak after Hearts were pipped to Scottish Prem glory Credit: PA