One night in Miami: The Scotsmen of the World Cup apocalypse

Although Scotland head coach Steve Clarke had given up hope of his team escaping their World Cup group, it was clear that this Scottish homegrown group had not.

Crippled by a fatal combination of profligacy and self-destruction, the Scots needed a game of snooker. They actually needed billiards while playing with their eyes closed and no cue ball.

Even John Higgins, the Wizard of Wishaw, would struggle to save them from this impasse.

To progress, Clarke’s side need four third-placed teammates to finish on three points on goal difference at or worse than -3.

Until Spain’s victory in the early hours of the Miami night, every established faction had done the exact opposite. Now, with Egypt winning, the Scots looked set to need two of Saturday’s three undecided groups to take them through.

A mammoth order but not an impossible one, given the influence of the Scots vibe in this bar as Mahmoud Saber returned in Egypt’s opener.

Nine minutes later, a man at the top of the Premier League failed to impress a young lady a few meters away at the bar, and Iran equalized, spoiling the mood at one particular table.

As the match progresses, the music gets louder and the tension in the Scottish group increases.

As the game continued, the room shook and samba danced to the beat. In the corner, Lionel Messi moved almost in slow motion, his arms swinging methodically against an imaginary current.

They say rhythm is a dancer. Leo was dancing to his own rhythm here.

Going into the second half of the match, the Apocalypse brothers remained inactive, with Egypt falling further behind with the departure of Mohamed Salah.