Scotland vs Croatia: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Despite Scotland’s recent struggles, we expect them to give Croatia a close game, though the visitors will come out on top. Croatia are unbeaten in their last three in all competitions, whilst Steve Clarke’s side are chasing their first win in eight.

Six points separate the two sides, as Scotland are winless in this competition so far with just one point from four games. Croatia are second with seven points. Expect goals for either side in this contest, as both teams have scored in six of the last eight involving Scotland and five of the last six involving Croatia – Scotland 1-2 Croatia

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.

Scotland vs Croatia will not be available to watch on TV in the UK.

Scotland

John McGinn, Jack Hendry, Scott McKenna and Tommy Conway have all returned to the squad after missing out in October through injury. Andy Robertson and Ryan Christie are amongst the Premier League representation.

Croatia

Expect Croatia to lean on the midfield pairing of Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic once more. Igor Matanovic could get the start up top again. Dominik Livakovic was sent off in their last game, so will be suspended for this one.

Scotland:

In their last five games, Scotland have drawn one and lost four. It has been a very disappointing stretch for Scotland with no wins to their name. This run dates back to the final game of their Euros campaign, where they crashed out in the group stages. They lost 1-0 to Hungary with Kevin Csoboth scoring a winner in the 10th minute of second half stoppage time.

Attention shifted to Nations League action in September. They opened up the tournament with a 3-2 loss at home to Poland. Scotland were able to claw back from a two-goal deficit with strikes from Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay, but ultimately succumbed to a 97th minute penalty. Another defeat followed, this time to Portugal. McTominay scored an early opener but goals from Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo turned it around.

A trip to Croatia resulted in a second consecutive 2-1 loss. Once again they took the lead, this time through Ryan Christie. However, Igor Matanovic responded shortly after, before Andrej Kramaric scored the winner. Last time out they were able to pick up a big draw, holding Portugal goalless.

Croatia:

In their last five games, Croatia have won two, drawn two and lost one. It has been a solid stretch for Croatia as they sit second in their Nations League group. Their last game was a dramatic 3-3 draw as they picked up a point at Poland. Despite falling behind early, the visitors scored three unanswered to take a 3-1 lead. However, Poland pulled one back on the stroke of half-time before finding the equaliser midway through the second half.

This followed a 2-1 win in the first fixture against their upcoming opponents Scotland. Igor Matanovic and Andrej Kramaric helped them overturn a Ryan Christie opener. This made it two wins in a row after a 1-0 victory over Poland. Luka Modric scored the only goal of the game shortly after the break.

The only defeat of this stretch was a narrow 2-1 loss at Portugal. Diogo Dalot and Cristiano Ronaldo put the hosts in control, though Dalot would then convert into his own net to halve the deficit. The first game of this run dates back to the Euros, in which Croatia drew 1-1 with Italy in their final group stage game before being eliminated.

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