The battering at the hands of Germany shook the belief in Steve Clarke’s men – but the Tartan Army now have one eye on the knockout stage again.
The precious point against tournament veterans Switzerland – who have reached the knockout round of the last seven tournaments they have been involved in – gives Scotland’s stars a chance of making history the last 16 for the first time. However, a win is required against pointless Hungary to keep any hopes alive after taking it to the final game of the group stage.
The top two teams from each of the six groups will proceed to the round of 16 – with hosts Germany guaranteed one of the top two spots in Group A after securing back-to-back victories. Those 12 sides will then be joined by four of the six third-placed finishers in the group stage. The six sides in third will be placed then be placed into a league table – with the top four progressing to the last 16. Those teams will then be ranked starting with points, goal difference, and goals scored.
Should the teams match it will then go down to wins – and could go down as far as disciplinary ranking comparisons, and the overall ranking in the Euro 2024 qualifiers. So what are the two paths for Scotland to take? Record Sport takes a look.
Going through as runners up
It looks like a mammoth task after THAT hammering to open the tournament – but it is still possible that Scotland could finish second in Group A. However, it would take a win for Germany against Switzerland and Steve Clarke’s men seeing off Hungary, as well as a massive six goal swing.
It’s not totally out of the realms of possibility that Julian Nagerlsmann’s men could turn on the style like they did on the opening day – but on the flip side they could play the second string to rest the big names for the last 16. It would also need to be history for Scotland to rack up the goals – with the most goals Scotland have ever scored at a single European Championship sitting at three.
Securing third spot in the group
Putting it simply – four points is a must. No teams has EVER made it out of the group stage from third spot without securing at least four points since the tournament was revamped.
The howler in the opening fixture does put Steve Clarke’s men at a disadvantage when it comes to goal difference – so Scotland could rank as the lowest of the sides sitting on four points. The expanded tournament has given Clarke and Co a clear path to becoming history makers.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
