Scotland vs Croatia: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips | Footy Accumulators

Scotland host Croatia in the penultimate group stage game of the Nations League, with the visitors looking for a win to strengthen their position in the table.

Date: 15/11/24

Kick-off time: 19:45

Venue: Hampden Park

With two games to go in the group stages, Croatia are in need of three points to solidify their position in second, or potentially go level with group leaders Portugal. They currently have seven points following two wins and a draw, and trail top spot by three points. A draw would keep them in second regardless of the result in the other fixture, but would place much more pressure on them in their final game against Portugal.

Scotland are all but out of the running for top two, and are instead focusing on avoiding relegation to League B. They are bottom of the group with just one point and are three points behind Poland in third. This means they will likely have to win this game and hope that Poland drop points against Portugal in order to have a chance of overtaking going into the final game.

If Scotland are to be successful in this game, they will likely rely on the goalscoring of midfielder Scott McTominay. The Napoli player has scored two of their four goals in the tournament and stands as their most dangerous threat. Steve Clarke will be welcoming back John McGinn to the lineup in what should be a huge boost. He will also choose between Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes up front, though the latter has yet to score for Birmingham in League One this season.

Defensively, the hosts have conceded seven goals in four games, and face a tough test keeping out a side who have scored five in their last two. Croatia have spread the goals well, with no player netting more than once. Andrej Kramaric and Igor Matanovic will likely lead the attack, with the pair scoring a goal apiece for their national side so far. They have combined for six league goals in the Bundesliga for their respective clubs.

This will be just the eighth meeting between these two countries, with nothing to split them historically. They have won two games apiece with three draws. However, there have only been two head-to-heads in the last decade. Croatia won both of these games, the latest a 2-1 victory in the reverse fixture in October. The hosts came from behind to take three points with goals from Matanovic and Kramaric.