With the Nations League groups set in stone, this could be the first time in an eternity that Scotland have been drawn in a group they could potentially top as leaders.
The footballing gods may have been shining down on Scotland, as they have been drawn against Switzerland, Slovenia, and North Macedonia. Let’s take a deeper dive into who Steve Clarke’s boys in dark blue will be facing.
The Scots last took on Switzerland during their Euro 2024 campaign — the less said about that trip to Germany the better! On that occasion, Steve Clarke’s side did muster a draw against a well-organised Swiss team.
We have emerged victorious against the Swiss on eight occasions, with the majority of these wins coming in front of the mighty Hampden roar. With the first of our two meetings scheduled to be held at Hampden, the crowd will be as important as ever as we aim to kick off our first home game with a bang — and hopefully three points.
Switzerland aren’t without their threats, though, and with plenty of attacking power behind them, they can’t be written off in a game of this magnitude. On many occasions, they have clinched victory from the jaws of defeat and, who knows, with a bit of World Cup success, they could be a force to be reckoned with — and certainly a team who will fancy their chances as Nations League group leaders.
Slovenia are a different kettle of fish for the Scots and, though not as poorly ranked in FIFA as North Macedonia — 57th compared to 66th — they are a team that Scotland should certainly be taking three points from.
Slovenia failed to qualify for the World Cup, so will be searching for some form of national team success. But with Scotland enjoying one great result after another, I don’t see them giving up three points lightly. Although, with these games taking place after the World Cup, you would need a crystal ball to predict the type of form Scotland will enter this competition in.
This is a fixture that has often promised success but ultimately delivered heartbreak for the Scots. The last time we dominated Slovenia was in our quest for World Cup qualification in 2017, when we defeated them 1–0 before drawing in Ljubljana and sealing our exile from the World Cup.
With times changing and results currently flowing for this national team, confidence should be high after this draw. With matches taking place later this year, there is plenty of time to prepare.
North Macedonia is often viewed as an easy win for Scotland. However, when we face them, we almost always win by slim margins — a heart-in-mouth type of situation, if you will.
The Balkan side have only emerged victorious once, and that came more than 15 years ago. But similarly to Scotland, they are a small nation that wears their hope for footballing success on their sleeve.
When fighting for World Cup qualification, this side did frustrate some giants, holding both Wales and Belgium to draws — on more than one occasion for the latter. This small nation probably felt hard done by to miss out on World Cup qualification, given one win and another draw would have taken them above Wales for second place. Could the Nations League provide a glimmer of hope for this side? Well, not if Scotland have their way.
With Scotland currently riding the high of World Cup qualification and a squad that looks stronger than ever, the Tartan Army will have a creeping sense of hope that we may dominate our group. Better not to shout this too loudly, though — as we’ve seen it all before as Scotland fans.
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