Match ends, Scotland 2, England 2.
Harry Kane's injury-time equaliser rescued England from a late collapse after Scotland threatened to secure a dramatic victory in their World Cup qualifier at Hampden Park.
Substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's close-range finish after 70 minutes looked to have put England on course for three points that would have cemented their position at the top of Group F - only for Scotland to turn a largely undistinguished game upside down in the closing moments.
Celtic's Leigh Griffiths scored two magnificent free-kicks in three minutes, to the left and right of the increasingly uncertain and exposed England goalkeeper Joe Hart, to give Scotland the lead as the board went up for four minutes of stoppage time.
With Scotland's fans pleading for the final whistle and Hampden Park in a frenzy as they closed in on their first win against the "Auld Enemy" since 1999, there was only a minute left when Kane, given the captaincy by manager Gareth Southgate, rescued his manager with a far-post finish from Raheem Sterling's cross.
It kept an unimpressive England on course for next summer's World Cup in Russia and dealt a savage blow to Scotland's already dwindling chances.
- Relive the thriller from Hampden Park
- Player ratings from Scotland and England
- Is Hart's time as England number one over?
- 5 live Football Daily: Reaction from Hampden Park
A remarkable finish
- 87 minutes: Griffiths draws Scotland level
- 90 minutes: Griffiths puts Scotland ahead
- 93 minutes: Kane's equaliser for England
'A crazy last six minutes' - Free-kick reaction
Scotland striker Leigh Griffiths: "I practise the free-kicks every day in training. It's not often they come off, it's special. It could be a big point for us."
England defender Gary Cahill: "It was a crazy last six minutes and obviously it was not ideal for us. There were two brilliantly executed free-kicks but we came here to get three points and maybe we lacked creativity from the whole team."
England manager Gareth Southgate: "It is a game we should win but two moments of brilliant quality from Leigh Griffiths turned it on its head."
Scotland manager Gordon Strachan: "To do what my players did was phenomenal. You cannot do any more than they did. It was like a middleweight fighting a heavyweight. For Leigh Griffiths to score two goals after the huge amount of work he put in is taking drive to a new level."
Heartbreak for Scotland
Scotland went from despair to ecstasy and on to disappointment in the space of six dramatic, chaotic minutes at Hampden Park.
The famous old stadium carried an air of resignation after Oxlade-Chamberlain gave England the lead but Griffiths ignited the fervent home support with two magnificent free-kicks in three minutes to put them in sight of an unlikely victory given what had gone before.
Strachan's side were full of industry and intent but looked short on star quality until Celtic's Griffiths pulled two free-kicks right out of the top drawer to the left and right of England keeper Joe Hart.
In a frantic finale, with Scotland's fans baying for the final whistle, goalkeeper Gordon saved Eric Dier's free-kick but could do nothing as Kane arrived at the far post to turn in Sterling's delivery.
Scotland will need a remarkable run of results to reach next year's finals in Russia - indeed they did before kick-off - and here they paid the price for squandering three points.
They could not be faulted for endeavour and it was a tribute to their attitude and resilience that they put themselves in a position where they almost won, but ultimately Scotland are now almost certain to miss out on another major tournament.
Awful England's great escape
England's supporters made unflattering comparisons between Scotland and San Marino when they held a slender one-goal advantage - and were left eating their words as Gareth Southgate's side stood on the brink of defeat.
The mixed reaction of relief and elation as Kane equalised was understandable as a measure of embarrassment was spared and Scotland's players slumped to the ground in agony.
England maintained their record of not losing a qualifier since October 2009 but did little to justify the taunts aimed in Scotland's direction by their supporters or make any of their potential opponents break into a sweat should they reach the World Cup in Russia.
It was a disjointed, uninspired performance that was rescued by the poacher's instincts of England's captain.
England can accept this result but the display left so much to be desired.
In the face of game but limited opposition, England looked jaded, leg-weary and and lacking in spark for long periods.
At this stage of the season, with only Tuesday's friendly against France to negotiate, it would have been a case of "job done" had they won - instead they had to be content with a draw from an unsatisfactory display that proved Southgate's England is very much a work in progress.
Strachan and Southgate left frustrated
Strachan turned and punched the air in delight as Scotland fought their way back into this game - for all their obvious shortcomings, this was a team playing for their manager.
Victory would have made Strachan's position much stronger as it comes under increasing scrutiny and he will have felt huge disappointment - for his players more than himself - as England snatched that draw in the closing seconds.
Strachan looks certain to oversee an unsuccessful qualifying campaign and often this is accompanied by the inevitable conclusion to a managerial reign - but he can also ask will anyone else get more out of a group of players packed with work-rate and a first-class attitude, but woefully short on "X-factor"?
For that other former Middlesbrough manager Southgate, he can be grateful to Kane for sparing him a loss that would have badly damaged his credibility so soon into his tenure as England boss.
The pre-match talk was of team unity after a stint alongside the Marines, but it was an out-of-the-box piece of thinking that bore no fruit on the field.
Man of the match - Leigh Griffiths
It would take something very spectacular for England not to reach Russia - but there is much to do to change the pattern of recent failures at major tournaments.
Line-ups
Scotland
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 1Gordon
- 4Berra
- 5Mulgrew
- 2Tierney
- 11AnyaSubstituted forMartinat 81'minutes
- 6MorrisonSubstituted forMcArthurat 45'minutes
- 8BrownBooked at 3mins
- 3Robertson
- 10SnodgrassSubstituted forFraserat 67'minutes
- 7S Armstrong
- 9Griffiths
Substitutes
- 12Marshall
- 13McArthur
- 14Naismith
- 15Bannan
- 16Fletcher
- 17Forrest
- 18Martin
- 19Martin
- 20Fraser
- 21Hamilton
- 22Cairney
- 23Reynolds
England
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Hart
- 2Walker
- 6Smalling
- 5Cahill
- 3Bertrand
- 8LivermoreBooked at 44minsSubstituted forDefoeat 90+2'minutes
- 4DierBooked at 60mins
- 7RashfordSubstituted forOxlade-Chamberlainat 65'minutes
- 10AlliSubstituted forSterlingat 84'minutes
- 11Lallana
- 9Kane
Substitutes
- 12Trippier
- 13Forster
- 14Lingard
- 15Gibson
- 16Stones
- 17Jones
- 18Defoe
- 19Sterling
- 20Oxlade-Chamberlain
- 21Cresswell
- 22Heaton
- 23Butland
- Referee:
- Paolo Tagliavento
- Attendance:
- 48,520
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home39%
- Away61%
- Shots
- Home8
- Away16
- Shots on Target
- Home3
- Away9
- Corners
- Home4
- Away7
- Fouls
- Home7
- Away9
Live Text
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Full Time
Second Half ends, Scotland 2, England 2.
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Joe Hart (England) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Leigh Griffiths (Scotland).
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Goal!
Goal! Scotland 2, England 2. Harry Kane (England) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Raheem Sterling with a cross following a set piece situation.
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Attempt saved. Eric Dier (England) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.
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Substitution
Substitution, England. Jermain Defoe replaces Jake Livermore.
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Harry Kane (England) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Chris Martin (Scotland).
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Ryan Bertrand (England) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Ryan Fraser (Scotland).
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Goal!
Goal! Scotland 2, England 1. Leigh Griffiths (Scotland) from a free kick with a left footed shot to the bottom left corner.
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Foul by Jake Livermore (England).
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Chris Martin (Scotland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Goal!
Goal! Scotland 1, England 1. Leigh Griffiths (Scotland) from a free kick with a left footed shot to the top right corner.
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Foul by Gary Cahill (England).
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Ryan Fraser (Scotland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Substitution
Substitution, England. Raheem Sterling replaces Dele Alli.
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Attempt missed. Leigh Griffiths (Scotland) left footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Kieran Tierney.
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Attempt saved. Adam Lallana (England) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Harry Kane.
Comments
Join the conversation
We're gonna finish top of this group and then be home the first time we play any one decent. Nothing's changed.
How Scott Brown managed to avoid getting sent off is beyond me though.
Scottish fans booing their own national anthem again - classy!
Scotch is a drink, which I like very much.
The Scots are a people, who (generally) I like very much.
Then......................
We found out why Hart is no longer required at Man City. first goal was nowhere near the corner of the goal.
Fair play to Scotland I thought they deserved to win, Griffiths must be gutted.
Overall I am not confident in England at all, I think we will win the group and get embarrassed again at the World Cup.
Are you Englush lads sure about that ? 😎
Two poor teams, poor game, only lit up by Griffiths free kicks and the frantic finish.
These two won't worry any good teams any time soon.
Eng far too complacent. Definitely a gap in ability but credit to Sco for keeping going
A fair result in the end from a terrible game. We'll top this group and then same old stuff in the finals