The road to the 2022 World Cup finals is reaching its end and for Scotland and Steve Clarke, victory in the next three matches will guarantee a place in the play-offs.
Denmark boast a 100% winning record after six games meaning they are seven points clear of second placed Scotland with four matches of the qualifying campaign remaining.
Even the most optimistic supporter knows second place is the best we can hope for.
But, with four games of the campaign left to play Scotland have the keys in their hands. All they have to do is pick up enough points to ensure they reach the door.
Saturday’s game at Hampden is the pivotal match of the remaining fixtures with victory ensuring Scotland will open up a four point lead on third-placed Israel, who are the visitors to the National Stadium.
To have a four point lead with three games remaining would be a great position to be in, especially as it means further wins in the Faroe Islands next Tuesday and in Moldova on November 12 would avoid any final day drama of a home game against the Danes three days later on November 15.
Forgetting Denmark for a second and it is clear the toughest of the three games is the first against Israel.
It feels as if they are team Scotland have played more than any in the last five years but if we cannot be confident of beating them on our own patch in front of a packed Hampden crowd then we should pack up and go home.
Clarke and his players know the importance of winning this one. They also know the potential consequences if they don’t take all three points.
Tartan Army members of a certain age will know that Denmark game is the one we don’t want to be going into needing a result. If we’ve learned anything in the last 20 years it is that raucous finales at Hampden do not tend to go well for us and I don’t know about you but I’m weary of seeing Scotland come up short when it matters most.
That is why Saturday’s Hampden showdown will show whether this really is a dawn of a new era for Scotland in international football or whether the previous two decades of failure are the norm and the summer participation in the Euros was an anomaly.
The same players who played in the Euros know what it means to represent their country on the big stage. More importantly they know what it takes to earn that opportunity.
That knowledge and experience was the driving factor in the outstanding 1-0 win in Austria last month. We always knew Scotland needed at least one big result on the road to earn their chance of making the playoffs.
Were they to go and blow it by slipping up at home would be bordering on criminal.
To be blunt, there can be no excuses. Make no mistake, failure to reach the playoffs from this position will not only feel like a huge opportunity missed but given the excitement of the summer it will feel like a huge step back to mediocrity.
From this position failure is not only not an option is it wholly unacceptable.