Euro 2020: Can Vaclik Keep Scotland In Czech?

Scotland vs Czech Republic

Euro 2020 will come alive for the nation of Scotland on Monday and the Tartan Army will be in full voice for the visit of the Czech Republic.

The Czech’s have more recent big competition history and are ever-presents in the European Championships, while Scotland beat Serbia in the playoffs to make a first appearance at a major finals since 1998.

Both teams have big name players, Liverpool’s wing-back Andy Robertson for Scotland and Sevilla’s goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik to name just two.

But if Scotland manage to get one goal or more past Vaclik, then the roof will surely come off Hampden Park.

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Talking Points

Scotland the Brave

The Scots arrive at Euro 2020 on a five match unbeaten run, almost unheard of in recent years, but head coach Steve Clarke has put together a team with an abundance of character and no little quality particularly at the back.

Captained by Liverpool’s wing-back Robertson and with Leeds skipper Liam Cooper at the heart of the defence, there is plenty of experience. Plus if you’ll add Arsenal’s left-sided centre-back Kieran Tierney, they have a player with a bright future.

In the run in to the 2020/21 Premier League season, Liverpool had to come from behind to earn a Champions League place and Robertson was at his best in defence as well as supporting the Reds in attack.

Cooper has been a key figure in Leeds United’s successful return to the Premier League, while Arsenal floundered when Tierney suffered an injury earlier in the campaign.

Manchester United’s Scott McTominay will hold the centre of midfield while up front, Southampton’s Che Adams is a clever goal poacher.

Draws with Austria and Israel, followed by a thumping 4-0 win over the Faroe Islands, has given Scotland a decent start to their 2022 World Cup qualification campaign.

And they came through two warm-up games unscathed after an impressive 2-2 draw with Netherlands followed by a 1-0 win over Luxembourg.

The Euro 2020 betting odds make no secret of the high chance of Scotland going out at the group stage, but the Tartan Army is going to have a party whatever their Euro 2020 results and they can rely on the bravery of their players.

Czech Republic are hit and miss

Scotland’s opponents are ranked four places higher as the 40^th best team in world football and they would be higher if they could add some consistency to their undoubted talent.

Head coach Jaroslav Silhavy has been in charge since 2018 and has a 56-per cent win percentage with the Czechs, winning 15 of his 27 games in charge, losing 11, and drawing just once.

The Czechs lost a World Cup qualifier to Wales, but drew with Belgium and then whacked Estonia 6-2. Their Euro 2020 warm up games threw up another pair of contrasts as they were hammered 4-0 by Italy before beating Albania 3-1.

So apart from the impressive draw with Belgium it has been “win or lose” for the Czechs. And if they are to come out on the right side of results, they need their big players to perform consistently.

Czech Republic will be looking to get their Euro 2020 campaign off to a good start when they face Scotland — Czech Republic’s Ondrej Celustka celebrates scoring their third goal with Tomas Soucek

Keeper Vaclik is as reliable as anyone. He was a key player as Sevilla stayed in the La Liga title race until late in the season, ultimately finishing fourth and just two points behind Barcelona.

West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek has had a great season as the Hammers qualified for Europe. In his second season in the Premier League, Soucek has scored some crucial goals.

He’s strong in the air and makes dangerous runs into his opponents’ penalty area, which the Scotland defence will be well aware of.

Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrick Schick will lead the line, while Burnley’s Matej Vydra is an option if the Czechs are chasing the game.

History

While Scotland have not been to a major finals since 1998, Czech Republic are Euro specialists, qualifying for every tournament since its inception.

Both sides have won four of their nine meetings since 1999, though the Scots are unbeaten in the last three.

Scotland won both clashes against the Czech Republic in the UEFA Nations League in 2020, 1-2 away and 1-0 at home, as Ryan Fraser took the spoils.

Betting Tip

	Scotland vs Czech Republic	1X2 Draw @ 2.87
	June 14, 21:00 (GMT+8)

Scotland are at SBOTOP odds of 2.85 to make a dream start on their return to the biggest international stages, while Czech Republic are at 2.55.

Both teams could really do with a win in this opener with England and Croatia to come.

But I suspect they may just cancel each other out, which would result in a rare draw for the Czechs and a point on the board for Scotland.