Scotland midfielder Billy Gilmour has been ruled out of the World Cup after suffering a knee injury in the match against Curaçao.
The 24-year-old collapsed on the turf with no one nearby during the first half of the 4-1 win over Dick Advocaat’s side at Hampden and was immediately replaced.
Post-match scans revealed Gilmour had suffered a knee injury and will now return to club side Napoli for rehabilitation.
Scotland’s first World Cup match is against Haiti in Boston in just over two weeks.
Gilmore went to get tested after the game.
Scotland manager Steve Clarke said: “I am devastated for Billy as he has played a vital role in our World Cup qualifiers. The timing of this injury is cruel and we all feel sorry for him.”
“He knows we all think of him as a footballer and a person. No words will comfort him tonight, but I am sure Billy will have many more major tournaments ahead of him in the future.”
Gilmour left the pitch during the match against Curacao.
Who will replace Gilmour?
Gilmour’s replacement has not yet been confirmed, but Clarke revealed in his post-match press conference that Udinese’s Lennon Miller, Rangers’ Conor Barron and Sparta Prague’s Andy Irving are all on standby.
Manchester United youngster Tyler Fletcher, 19, was not included in the World Cup squad but was one of five young players to train with the men’s national team this week and made his debut against Curacao.
“Those three are on standby and obviously Tyler joined us this week,” Clarke said.
“We trained well this week and got closer to each other compared to the other three, but I think we need to have a big discussion with the staff to decide the best path forward.”
Fletcher is the son of former Scotland captain Darren Fletcher, who made 80 appearances during his 14-year international career.
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Scotland manager Steve Clarke reflects on the 4-1 win, Curacao’s red card and Billy Gilmour’s injury ahead of the World Cup.
‘The red card changed the dynamic of the game’
Scotland struggled against Curaçao in the early stages and were down 1-0 after Tahith Chong’s goal, but Jurgen Locadia’s red card seven minutes before the break turned the game in Scotland’s favour, even though Clarke wanted the two sides to keep a full complement on the pitch.
Lawrence Shankland scores twice for Scotland against Curacao.
“The red card obviously changed the whole dynamic of the game and at least in the last 10 we started creating chances and scored a few goals,” he said.
“It’s obviously good to win an international game, but I think it would have been better if we had been kept at 11 v 11 and then asked more questions about finding space on the pitch. Can we create the chances we created against 10 men against 11 men? That would have been better practice for us.”
