Sebastien Pocognoli is not worried about Oliver McBurnie's Scotland scoring run, and he has made that clear before Scotland's meeting with Slovenia at Hampden on 2026-10-06. McBurnie has gone 19 Scotland appearances without a goal, but the Scotland boss says he has offered more than just finishing.

Pocognoli's view on McBurnie

Pocognoli has started McBurnie in all three of his first games in charge, and he is sticking with him despite the drought. Scotland drew 0-0 in Ljubljana, lost at home to Switzerland and beat North Macedonia on Saturday to move onto four points at the midway point.

The manager said McBurnie had been effective against Slovenia and in Macedonia, even if the final touch has not arrived. "I see it differently because I do not look to the past," Pocognoli told dailymail.com. "For me, when he started it was like zero caps. Against Slovenia he had a great game. He should have scored once, he knows that, and against Switzerland it was difficult to judge."

He added: "In Macedonia he produced a lot of good action to be dangerous and maybe he should have scored one if we gave him the cross, but that moment will arrive. I don’t make an issue out of it."

That is the case Pocognoli is making. McBurnie has also been scoreless in three Nations League outings for Scotland, and he has not scored in the Premier League this season for Hull City either.

Scotland's patience before the rematch

The immediate test comes against Scotland vs Slovenia, with Pocognoli warning that Slovenia are likely to sit deep and break quickly. Scotland's four points from three matches give the fixture some weight, but not panic, and the 0-3 home loss to Switzerland is the reminder of what happens when the game gets stretched.

Pocognoli wants Scotland to stay patient and balanced, and McBurnie's place in the side suggests he is being judged on the wider job as much as the scoring column. The question now is whether that support turns into a first Scotland goal on 2026-10-06 at Hampden.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →