Scotland face a table-topping six pointer as they welcome Czech Republic to Hampden Park in their UEFA Nations League clash.
Victory will see Scotland stay top of League B2 and move four points clear of their visitors who will otherwise leapfrog them with victory and move two points clear at the summit with two rounds remaining,
Team News
Andrew Robertson is suspended for Scotland after picking up his second yellow card of the campaign in Sunday’s win over Slovakia.
Liam Copper will also be absent after a groin injury kept him out of Sunday’s match, having impressed in their Euro 2020 Play-Off semi-final win over Israel on Thursday.
Czech Republic have no fresh injury concerns to report although manager, Jaroslav Silhavy could rotate his squad.
Stat Attack
- Scotland have won just one of five competitive meetings against Czech Republic in all competitions (W1, D1, L3).
- Czech Republic are unbeaten in two competitive trips to Scotland (W1, D1), scoring twice in both such encounters.
- Scotland have scored four goals this calendar year with Lyndon Dykes and Ryan Christie scoring twice each, although the latter is absent after being forced to self-isolate last week following Stuart Armstrong’s positive Coronavirus test.
- Czech Republic have conceded four goals in their three Nations League games this campaign, although just one of those four conceded goals came in the first half – Scotland’s Dykes in reverse leg in Olomouc last month.
- Scotland are unbeaten in their last five home matches in all competitions (W3, D2).
Prediction
Scotland were robust against Slovakia on Sunday defensively yet lacked that clinical touch to finish off chances when on the attack, which has to step up a gear otherwise Czech Republic could punish a series of wasteful chances from this Tartan Army squad even though breaking down a tough defence will be difficult.
Czech Republic meanwhile benefited from a calamitous Israel display to win on Sunday but Scotland’s defence will provide tougher opposition in what should be a tightly fought encounter given that top position of League B2 is at stake.
We must also note that this squad is very different to the team that Scotland faced last month in Olomouc so the Tartan Army cannot afford any complacency, otherwise this could get difficult in what has been a demanding week for Steve Clarke’s players.
A draw therefore would be a good bet but Scotland looked excellent in their 3-5-2 formation against Slovakia and if they can find that sharpness up front, I think they might have enough to win this.
Prediction: Scotland 2-1 Czech Republic
Result: Scotland 1-0 Czech Republic