Euro 2020 Qualifiers: Scotland vs Russia 9/7/19 Betting Odds and Preview

Scotland hosts Russia at Hampden Park in Glasgow hoping to earn three points and move closer to securing a slot at the 2020 UEFA Euro tournament.

Scotland

Scotland is currently in 4th place in the Group I table of the 2020 UEFA Euro qualifiers. They have won twice but have also been defeated two times in their first four games played so far. Scotland was blanked by Kazakhstan 0-3 during their opening match last March 21, 2019, but they bounced back with a 2-0 shutout of San Marino. Kenny McLean gave Scotland the early 1-0 lead while Johnny Russell sealed the win with a score in the 74th minute. Scotland won over Cyprus 2-1 in their third match but they suffered another shutout at the hands of group leaders Belgium 0-3 in their most recent match. Regardless of what happens, Scotland is already qualified for the playoff by virtue of their performance at the UEFA Nations Cup.

These were the players who suited up for Scotland’s most recent match in the Euro 2020 Qualifiers:

• GOALKEEPERS:  Jordan Archer, Scott Bain, Jon McLaughlin
• DEFENDERS:  David Bates, Charlie Mulgrew, Stephen O’Donnell, Liam Palmer, Andy Robertson, John Souttar, Kieran Tierney
• MIDFIELDERS: Stuart Armstrong, Barry Bannan, John Fleck, John McGinn, Callum McGregor, Kenny McLean, Scott McTominay, Callum Patterson, Graeme Shinnie, Oliver Burke, James Forrest, Ryan Fraser,
• STRIKERS:  Marc McNulty, Lewis Morgan, Oli McBurnie, Johnny Russel

Russia

Russia is currently second behind Belgium in the Group I table. The Russians have won three out of their first outings and they have a total of 9 points right now. Russia has scored the most goals of any Group I team with a total of 15 in four games played. Their goal difference of +12 is also the highest in the group. Eden Hazard scored two goals as Belgium beat Russia in the group opener last March 21st. Denis Cheryshev scored two goals as Russia got into the winning column with a 4-0 win over Kazakhstan. The Russians then pounded a hapless San Marino side 9-0 in their next match before scoring another shutout win over Cyprus 1-0 in their most recent outing. Russia enters this match as a slight soccer betting underdog.

This was Russia’s squad in their last match at the 2020 EURO Qualifiers:

• GOALKEEPERS: Marinato Guilherme, Igor Akinfeev, Vladimir Gabulov, Anton Shunin, Andrey Lunev
• DEFENDERS: Maksim Belyaev, Evgeniy Chernov, Georgi Dzhikiya, Vyacheslav, Karavaev, Fedor Kudryashov, Ilya Kutepov, Mario Fernandes, Kirill Nababkin, Roman Neustadter, Sergey Petrov, Andrei Semyonov, Georgiy Shchennikov, Egor Sorokin
• MIDFIELDERS: Ilzat Akhmetov, Dmitry Baranov, Yuri Gazinskiy, Aleksandr Golovin, Vladislav Ignatiev, Aleksey Ionov, Daler Kuzyaev, Aleksey Miranchuk, Anton Miranchuk, Reziuan Mirzov, Ivan Polyakov, Magomed Ozdoev, Roman Zobnin
• STRIKERS: Zelimkhan Bakaev, Fedor Chalov, Denis Cheryshev, Artem Dzyuba, Nikolay Komlichenko, Fedor Smolov

Who Wins?

After dropping their initial assignment against Belgium, Russia has won three matches in a row here at the 2020 Euro qualifiers. Not only did Russia come up with three straight wins, but they also won by an aggregate score of 14-0. Sure, you can say that the level of competition may not be as impressive, but remember that these teams are the same teams that Scotland plays or will play, being groupmates.

Russia rose from FIFA rank 70 to 40 after making the quarterfinals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Russia is currently second in Group B of the UEFA Nations League and is ranked 17th out of 55 teams. On the other hand, Scotland last played in the FIFA World Cup in 1998 and in 1996 for the UEFA Euro tournament.

The lineups for both squads haven’t been finalized yet. But if I am to make my prediction now, I will go with the visitors. Scotland has home field advantage here but I like Russia’s form heading to this contest. Russia has been dominant in their last three outings and unless something drastic happens to their last line-up, I like Russia to score the win here. Prediction: Russia

Place Your Bet Here