Albania vs Spain

It’s a ‘make or break’ fixture in Euro 2024 Group A as Scotland and Hungary go head-to-head at Stuttgart’s MHPArena.

Scotland’s fourth-ever appearance at a Euro finals was off to a disastrous start as Germany thrashed them 5-1 in their Group A opener. However, Steve Clarke’s side threw themselves a lifeline in round two, holding Switzerland to a 1-1 draw in Cologne despite losing star defender Kieran Trippier to injury. Anything other than a win would condemn the Tartan Army to another group-stage elimination at major tournaments, a feeling they’re all too familiar with, having failed to reach the knockouts in 11 previous attempts. Worryingly for Scotland, their form in the build-up to this pivotal fixture is anything but promising, with a 2-0 win against minnows Gibraltar remaining their only success in their last 11 internationals (D4, L6).

In the meantime, Hungary’s hopes of upsetting the odds in Germany have crumbled in the early exchanges, with back-to-back two-goal margin defeats to Germany and Switzerland derailing their chances of progression. Manager Marco Rossi can only hope his men can rediscover a sublime form that had seen them lose just once in 16 games before the tournament (W10, D5). Against this backdrop, the ‘Magyars’ have stuttered at the Euros, going winless in their last eight matches (D4, L4), with three of those four defeats seeing them fail to get on the scoresheet. That’s particularly ominous, knowing they need a multi-goal margin win to increase their chances of progressing as one of the four best third-placed teams. Another concern is that they’ve not kept a clean sheet in seven consecutive competitive outings.