Scotland face the Czech Republic in what is an important opening fixture of EURO 2020

Scotland face the Czech Republic in their opening fixture of Euro 2020 in what is their first major tournament since 1998.

The bookies expect both England and Croatia to head the group as they meet on Sunday night, but Steve Clarke will be hoping to gatecrash their party after some impressive form entering the tournament. They faced both Netherlands and Luxembourg ahead of the tournament as they secured a 2-2 draw before winning 1-0 courtesy of Che Adams’.

Entering their first game on Monday night at Hampden Park, it has to be said that Clarke has never looked back since taking the job as Scotland head coach as they qualified for their first major tournament since 1998. The excitement around the nation cannot be put into words as the Scottish fans will finally be able to watch their nation again.

The National side qualified for the tournament back in November, and they didn’t do it the easy way either. The Tartan Army were forced into extra time with minutes to play when Luca Jovic headed home from close range in the 90th minute.

It was a nervous final half an hour as both sides were scared to commit many men into attacking positions, in the end, it went to penalties. David Marshall took the headlines on the back papers as he saved Alexander Mitrovic’s penalty to secure their place in EURO 2020.  

But if Scotland want to make it into the knockout stages of the competition, it’s safe to say that this is their most important game.  Though the Tartan Army will hope to cause a surprise, they and the Czech Republic are tipped to fight it out for third. Therefore victory at Hampden could strengthen their chances of going through as one of the best four losers of the group stages.

Jack Hendry

After making his international debut earlier this year, the Scotsman has not looked back and has slowly forced his way into the starting eleven. He is in contention to start their opening fixture as the ball-playing centre back is favoured by Steve Clark.

He recently scored against the Netherlands from 25 yards out as he put his side ahead in the first half. The Celtic player will return to his club after the tournament but if he can shine during EURO 2020, it will open the opportunity to start next season or potentially move to a different club if he is not in the first-team plans.

Five years ago if you told Lyndon Dykes he would be playing in EURO 2020, he’d bite your hand off and tell you that you were lying. Scotland’s number nine has recently risen to the top as he now plays for Queens Park Rangers after his summer move from Livingston.

In his first season in the Championship, he managed to score 12 goals as well as five assists. He is still 25-years old, yet to enter his prime, and is starting to attract some interest from Premier League clubs.

He will be battling Southampton’s Che Adams for a starting position, however Steve Clarke has looked to make room for Dykes in the 11 and has even suggested they could play in a two.

Declan Gallagher

Finally, Declan Gallagher will be looking to impress a host of clubs this summer as he is currently a free agent entering the tournament. He recently left Motherwell for a new challenge, the 30-year old centre back has a vast amount of experience behind him to make him an attractive accusation this summer.

It looks like he won’t be starting many games this summer although he could make an impact from the bench to help hold onto a slender league. Although he will be pushing to start the tournament now that Scott McTominay has returned into midfield.

Match Information

The game will take place on Monday night at Hampden Park, home of Scotland’s national side. The match will be televised on BBC One for free, with the game starting at 8:00 pm.

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