As Scotland visualise walking out against hosts Germany in the opening game of Euro 2024, they will expect the eyes of the world to be on them. Statements of Scottish defiance are now rarely heard at major tournaments, yet on the eve of the Euros, captain Andy Robertson declared: “If we perform the way we know we can perform, we believe we can make history.”
It has been 26 years since Scotland played a fixture of such international magnitude. Against Germany, there will be a symmetry to when the Tartan Army took on Brazil at the Stade de France in the opening game of the 1998 World Cup. That tournament, like many before, became one of glorious failure for Scotland. A generation on, this team believes they can become the first to progress from a group stage.
Robertson admitted an opening game against the hosts “doesn’t get much tougher”. Germany will be fueled by emotion and a sense of timing, while head coach Julian Nagelsmann issued a rallying cry of his own. “We want to have the country behind us, to push us forward,” he said. A nation expects a victory to send Germany hurtling into a golden summer. It is up to Scotland to stand in their way.
They will do so with the Tartan Army behind them. For the thousands who filled the Marienplatz square in Munich on Thursday, Scotland’s first major men’s tournament abroad since 1998 feels like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. For the 26 players in Steve Clarke’s squad, those emotions are only enhanced: the majority will not have faced an occasion like it, and may not do so again. It is the game of their lives.
Even the 60-year-old Clarke, despite featuring in matches as big as Champions League finals in his time as assistant manager at Chelsea, was taken aback by the size of the press conference room at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
Clarke, though, was never going to get carried away, or deliver too much of a performance. The manager who has led Scotland to back-to-back European Championships is not one for wasting his words. “Settled well, trained well, looking forward to the match,” he said. Clarke did describe the enormity of Scotland’s opener as a “sideshow” but amid all the noise and excitement back home, he will have been telling his players to trust the basics.
As messages from family and videos of the Tartan Army arriving in Munich reached the squad, Clarke and Robertson were more than aware of how proud the country is of their achievement in reaching the Euros. But there is a determination within the group to create something else to be proud of. Robertson admitted Scotland “let ourselves down” at Euro 2020, where they claimed a draw against England at Wembley but were eliminated following defeats at home to the Czech Republic and Croatia.
That experience should help. As it was ahead of Euro 2020, the build-up to a major tournament can feel like “years and years”, but Scotland are aware of how quickly it can then slip away. “We don’t want to have regrets,” Robertson said. The manner of Scotland’s qualification campaign proved what they were capable of, and they are not in Germany to make up the numbers. “There’s no pressure or expectation from the wider world, but we expect a lot from ourselves,” Robertson added.
Germany may be the hardest start but Scotland have nothing to lose. It is their remaining fixtures against Switzerland and Hungary where Clarke is aiming to claim the four points that would be enough to reach the last 16. Scotland will prepare for Germany to have the majority of the ball, and will set out to be “compact” and “frustrate” their hosts. Nagelsmann has warned his team of the “Scottish mentality”, that offers more than just “long balls” into the box. “They are a team without world stars but that makes them dangerous,” he said, as a compliment.
There were two schools of thought when Scotland were drawn to face Germany in the tournament opener. The first was the risk that Scotland could run into an inspired opponent, with their first opportunity to display the power of home advantage and show they are coming together at the right time. Against that, Scotland would do well not to be swept aside. Conversely, the other theory is it could be the best time for Scotland to play Germany, to jump upon any uncertainty, to expose a young, fraught team burned by recent embarrassments at major tournaments.
Nagelsmann is not looking at the past. Scotland, though, can look to the future with hope. Beyond their return at Euro 2020, failure to get out of the group stages is not on this squad, but they would go down in history should they progress. If not, as Robertson pointed out, they will simply join the long list of Scottish teams who fell at the first hurdle. And ahead of facing the hosts, it was a message that felt better when it was out in the open, said loud and clear. As Robertson concluded ahead of Euro 2024, “What’s the worst that can happen?”
Germany vs Scotland, Euro 2024, kicks off on Friday 14 June at 8pm. Coverage on ITV1 and STV starts at 6.30pm
