Oblak recalls Scotland's 'beautiful football'

Slovenia captain Jan Oblak suggests Scotland already played "beautiful football" even before the appointment of new head coach Sebastien Pocognoli. The Belgian is expected to tweak the visitors' style as he takes charge for the first time since the departure of Steve Clarke in Saturday's Nations League opener in Ljubljana. But 33-year-old Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Oblak was impressed by Gordon Strachan's side as he conceded two goals on Scotland's last visit, albeit a draw meant both sides failed to qualify for the 2018 European Championships in Russia. "Scotland is a demanding opponent," he said. "Whenever we played against them, we had big problems." Indeed, Slovenia have failed to win in five meetings with the Scots, losing twice. "It was always said that Scotland is only strong on the long ball, on breaks," Oblak added. "That was maybe 15, 20 years ago. That is no longer the case. "Scotland plays beautiful football - they know how to play. The last time we played in Scotland, I remember that we were preparing for long balls, for breakaways, but they dropped the ball on the ground in the first minutes and had three 100% chances in the first 10 minutes. "The group is very demanding and Scotland is a very high-quality team, not least because they played at the last World Cup and showed that they are a high-quality team and that they also have very good individuals in their ranks."