A CAMPAIGN to honour Ally MacLeod, the former Scotland football manager, has received support from an unlikely source — the Peruvian and Iranian players responsible for his most notorious and humiliating results.

Two goals by Peru's Teofilo Cubillas consigned MacLeod's Scotland to defeat in the side's opening match of the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.

It set the tone for a disastrous tournament that was arguably the country's lowest sporting moment. A draw against footballing minnows Iran — with a goal by little-known striker Iraj Danaeifard — followed by an unlikely win against eventual finalists Holland was not enough to keep Scotland in a tournament that MacLeod had boasted at the outset he would win.

Last week The Sunday Times revealed that Craig Brown, one of the MacLeod's successors as national team manager, said the late coach did not merit inclusion in the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.

Brown argued that honouring a manager whose main achievements were a Scottish League Cup title with Aberdeen in 1976 and a Scottish Second Division title with Ayr United in 1969 amounted to rewarding failure.

However, Cubillas, 59 — nicknamed “Nene” (the babe) for his boyish good looks — who scored twice in Scotland's 3-1 defeat by Peru, said MacLeod was unlucky to lose and that he should be recognised.

“The manager [Ally MacLeod] had done a great job leading up to the World Cup and that confirmed Scotland as one of the favourites leading into the tournament,” he said.

“I can only judge from what I saw from that World Cup and he proved he was an excellent coach — there is no doubt about that. I'm sure the fans of Scotland can confirm that because they have followed his career and have seen his accomplishments.”

Cubillas says that while Scotland was one of the favourites to win that World Cup, what may have brought about their downfall was an element of surprise by the Peruvian side and the way Scotland changed its plans.

“We had a powerful and great rival in front of us, and the two goals that I was able to score and help lead my team to victory will stay as great memories for ever,” he said.

A petition to have MacLeod, who died in 2004, aged 72, after a battle with Alzheimer's disease, inducted into the hall of fame was launched by the Ayr branch of the Tartan Army. If MacLeod receives enough nominations, he will be included on a shortlist that will be decided by a Scottish Football Association (SFA) committee later this year.

Danaeifard, the former Iranian striker, said MacLeod's team, which included Kenny Dalglish, Graeme Souness and Archie Gemmill, was the best the nation has ever produced.

“He deserves this honour,” said the 57-year-old, who now owns a sports store in Dallas, Texas. “We thought we would lose 4-0 or 5-0, but I managed to score and Scotland were a bit unlucky.

“After that game, MacLeod led them to a win against Holland, who reached the final of the World Cup that year and probably deserved to win it, so that shows how good Scotland were.”

The hall of fame was established by the SFA to “honour the truly great players, managers and officials who have reached the pinnacle of their profession and made a significant contribution to Scotland's football reputation through their skill, spirit and determination”.

It has 51 members, including managers Sir Alex Ferguson, Sir Matt Busby, Jock Stein and Bill Shankly who, between them, won five European trophies as well as many domestic honours.

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