Wiseman believes in his young squad - the elusive point will come

Scott Wiseman has a firm belief in his players and their future. That was the clear impression he gave when speaking about his players and their performances.
While defeat against the Faroe Islands was a hard pill to swallow, the performance left many positives to build on. Speaking as Gibraltar’s head coach, he expressed a strong belief that his players can still achieve that elusive European qualifier group point. The Faroe Islands points might have slipped away on the day through minor mistakes and a solitary goal, but Wiseman remains firmly of the view that—even against the tougher opponents still to come—his players are capable of making it happen.
It is no small thing to say this and believe it. Nor is it mere bluster from a national coach trying to lift the spirits of his players. As a recent international himself, Wiseman knows the ins and outs of international football. He may not have played all of Gibraltar’s 100 matches, but having been there from day one, he is more than experienced enough to know what he has on the field and how his team can respond to what lies ahead.
He has lived through the heavy defeats and knows how overplaying the positives can bring down morale when setbacks arrive. Yet even with that awareness, he continues to insist that Gibraltar can reach that elusive point. That belief alone serves as a morale boost for his squad.
Already his tactics have shown that he trusts his players. Adopting a style that allows the defence to do its job without half the team dropping back in constant support has demonstrated his confidence in the quality of his back four. This, in turn, has freed Gibraltar to make better use of players beyond purely defensive roles.
More midfield play, greater support, and improved delivery to the forwards have expanded Gibraltar’s attacking options and disrupted opponents’ tactics. Just as importantly, there is a new attitude among players about what it means to challenge for a place in the national team.
For years, Gibraltar relied on a core group of players—many of them from before UEFA membership. As younger players came through, talent was evident but progress was slow. The latest matches, however, have opened opportunities for those previously overlooked to step in. Coupled with Wiseman’s public challenge for players to seize their chance, “rip the shirts off others, and make them their own,” the response has been positive.
Even short cameos of ten minutes have created excitement, with youth players showing they deserve the national shirt. The old days of players treating the training ground like a jolly are long gone.
Ribas ushered in the first big changes; Wiseman has added his own touch. Now it is less about long speeches and more about a simple phrase that drives the players forward: “play to win.”
Defeats may still come, but the conversation around Gibraltar has shifted. Fans no longer complain about defensive tactics or dull football. Instead, there is frustration at narrow defeats, costly errors, or refereeing decisions that didn’t go Gibraltar’s way.
Continuity is no longer a concern either. Many of the current players still have close to ten years of football ahead of them. Gibraltar fielded the youngest squad in European qualifiers this week, with an average age just over 23. Notably, not a single player on the pitch was over 30—a fact that won’t have gone unnoticed.
The head coach’s faith in his players, and his insistence that the elusive point will come, underlines a crucial truth: Gibraltar is no longer searching for excuses in defeat, but determined instead to prove themselves on the field.