0
0
Netherlands vs. Scotland Match Preview: On Friday night, the Netherlands will play an international friendly match against Scotland at the Johan Cruijff ArenA.
The two countries met for the first time since their friendly match at the Estadio Algarve in Portugal in June 2021, which ended in a 2-2 tie.
After losing three of his first four games in command of the Netherlands in his second spell in charge at the beginning of 2023, Ronald Koeman finished the year with five victories out of six to secure a spot at Euro 2024.
The Oranje finished in second place behind group champions France, who defeated them both at home and away by an aggregate score of 6-1, despite having played eight Group B games and earning 18 points.
FIFA has the Netherlands ranked sixth in the world, but they have struggled against teams of a similar calibre on the European scene in recent years.
Koeman will be eager to change that this month in friendly matches against Germany and a resurgent Scotland team in preparation for Euro 2024.
Despite their winning streak of five straight meetings with Scotland, the Netherlands will be favoured to win this Friday’s encounter, but their recent record in friendlies is somewhat dismal, having won just four of the previous twelve.
Scotland, on the other hand, will be heading to Amsterdam after a run of five straight losses in all competitions. They will be playing their final two 2023 fixtures in Euro 2024 qualification against Georgia (2-2) and Norway (3-3).
In spite of this, the Tartan Army—who had earlier in the year won five straight qualifiers—finished second in Group A, behind Spain, to guarantee automatic qualification for just their fourth European Championship.
They advanced to back-to-back Euros for the first time since 1992 and 1996, qualifying with one game remaining.
This summer, Scotland will face off against hosts Germany, Hungary, and Switzerland in the group stage. Steve Clarke will be hoping his team can put together a solid run of form during four friendlies before the tournament, beginning with a difficult trip to the Netherlands.
Scotland, who are currently ranked 34th in the world by FIFA, have had difficulty travelling recently, having only won three of their last ten away international matches and one of their last seven away friendly matches.
Their most recent triumph came in November 2003 at home against the Netherlands, when James McFadden scored the game’s lone goal.
Read Also: Romania vs. Northern Ireland Match Preview, Predictions, Team News, Lineups
Netherlands form (all competitions):
W W L W W W
Scotland form (all competitions):
W L L L D D
Brian Brobbey, an attacker for Ajax, has withdrawn out of the Netherlands team due to a hamstring injury. Other players in the treatment room include Joshua Zirkzee (muscle), Frenkie de Jong (ankle), Micky van de Ven (hamstring), and Sven Botman (ACL).
Quinten Timber, a midfielder at Feyenoord, has been called up to the senior team for the first time, and he will face opponents on Friday, including Teun Koopmeiners, Marten de Roon, Joey Veerman, and Georginio Wijnaldum.
With nine goals and thirteen assists in 36 games this season, Xavi Simons has been in excellent form for RB Leipzig. The playmaker may start in a three-man attack with Premier League-linked Donyell Malen and Wout Weghorst.
Regarding Scotland, defender Grant Hanley of Norwich City was called back to the team following a protracted absence due to an Achilles injury; however, he has since made the decision to leave the senior group.
However, Clarke still has a wealth of defensive choices at his disposal. If Kieran Tierney isn’t playing left back, he can play center back alongside Liam Cooper, Scott McKenna, Jack Hendry, John Souttar, Ryan Porteous, and Kieran Tierney.
Craig Gordon, 41, is a strong candidate to receive his 75th cap in goal, and midfielders John McGinn, Scott McTominay, and Lewis Ferguson—who has made an impression in Italy with Bologna this season—will all vie for the starting position.
Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Verbruggen; De Vrij, Van Dijk, Ake; Dumfries, Koopmeiners, De Roon, Hartman; Simons, Malen; Weghorst
Scotland possible starting lineup:
Clark; Cooper, McKenna, Tierney; Patterson, McTominay, McGinn, Robertson; Ferguson; Adams, Dykes
Our prediction for this match 2-1 or 3-2 won by Netherlands
