Scotland vs England

Hampden Park forms the backdrop for the 150th Anniversary Heritage Match between Scotland and England.

Seeking their first victory over their neighbors since 1999, Scotland will be confident about putting a stop to a five-match winless H2H run (D2, L3) in the 21st century after mustering a flawless Euro 2024 qualifying campaign. Steve Clarke’s men have won all five qualifiers by an aggregate score of 12-1 and remain one of only three nations with a 100% record after five matchdays, already setting one foot in next summer’s tournament. Scotland’s free-scoring form in 2023 has seen them bag 2+ goals in all five internationals this calendar year, highlighting the potential for a repeat of a goal-glutted 2-2 draw from their last H2H at Hampden Park in 2017. But it’s worth noting that stalemate has been sandwiched by a pair of scoring blanks (D1, L1).

In the meantime, a 1-1 draw against Ukraine in Wroclaw last weekend knocked England down from a four-game winning start to their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign. England’s disappointing display in that contest brought manager Gareth Southgate under scrutiny, even though his men remain unbeaten in all five internationals since exiting the 2022 World Cup in the quarter-finals. Despite boasting a slightly better all-time H2H record against the Scots (W48, D26, L41), the ‘Three Lions’ cannot take anything for granted. Indeed, they’ve failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their 15 friendly meetings against Scotland since a famous 0-0 draw in the first-ever men’s international fixture in 1872. But they can draw confidence from only losing one of their last 11 internationals (W7, D3).