Scotland v Denmark Preview

After a crucial two nil victory away in Moldova, Scotland will face Denmark at Hampden Park on Monday evening. The visitors have a perfect record in qualifying so far and today, I’ll be previewing what is set to be a match with a somewhat party atmosphere at the national stadium. 

With a World Cup play off secured, you would think Scotland’s clash with Denmark on Monday evening would have no meaning to it. However, this is certainly not the case. At least a point is required in order for Scotland to be seeded for the World Cup play offs and avoid the likes of Croatia and Switzerland. Being seeded also means the one-legged semi final would be a home one. There are no guarantees over whether the final, should Scotland get there, will be played at Hampden however. 

Looking at the opposition themselves, Denmark have lived up to the billing as the top seed in Group F. Kasper Hjulmand’s side have a one hundred per cent record up to this point in time and have conceded just one goal throughout their nine qualifying matches. That came in their most recent match against the Faroe Islands when the Danes rotated several first team players such as Thomas Delaney and Pierre-Emile Højberg. The game on Monday is of absolutely no significance to the visitors so here’s hoping, from a Scotland point of view, Denmark are not as rampant as recent results have suggested. 

For Scotland, Lyndon Dykes and Ryan Christie will be back and available for selection however Nathan Patterson, who stood out against Moldova, will be unavailable after picking up a yellow card in the match. Due to this, Steve Clarke has called up Celtic man Anthony Ralston. The progress the twenty two year old has made this season has been nothing short of astounding and a first senior call up to the national team is one that is not a surprise and equally fully deserved.

The aforementioned returns of Christie and Dykes in particular will be a huge boost for Steve Clarke although Che Adams did have a more than ample performance on Friday night. I expect to see the Southampton man retain his place in the starting lineup with Lyndon Dykes partnering him up top. This will be a duo who will undoubtedly cause headaches for whoever is starting in the heart of the Denmark defence. Being clinical in front of goal will be critical for Scotland on match day ten of qualifying and the duo of Dykes and Adams will surely aid the national team in doing so. 

Going back to the visitors, one of Denmark’s key players is full back Joakim Maehle. You’ll probably remember his name from the Euros in the summer. The twenty four year old hasn’t been on the greatest form for his club side, Atalanta, this season though. In spite of this, Maehle has been putting in consistently reliable displays for his national team. The Dane has scored five goals in eight qualifying appearances for his country. He will be one to watch on Monday night with his marauding runs down the left hand side. 

The front three Denmark started with on Friday night had an average age of just twenty two. They were all replaced in the match by three players with an average age of twenty five. In addition, there are many attacking absentees from the Denmark squad for this International break like Kasper Dolberg and Mikkel Damsgaard. Despite their lack of firepower, the Danes still managed to put three past the Faroe Islands. However, coming up against a rigid Scotland side, I’m not sure the Denmark will be able to display full attacking fluidity. 

All in all, I believe the game itself will be an extremely tight one. With a sold out Hampden Park, the Scotland players will be desperate to produce a result. There’s no getting away from the quality of Denmark though which will surely be manifested at one point or another in the game. My score prediction, I hear you ask; Scotland 1-1 Denmark. 

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