No gifts in Glasgow
A lot of sympathy has flown Ukraine’s way in recent months. On Wednesday, however, things will get serious again from a sporting point of view and the Ukrainian footballers should not expect anything to be handed to them on a silver platter in Scotland. After all, nothing less is at stake than the last European ticket for the World Cup in Qatar in the winter.
But there is still a long way to go. The match between the Scots and the Ukrainians is first the semifinal. The winner of this duel will then have to play in the showdown in Wales in a few days. The Bravehearts are hoping for the first small Battle of Britain and then want to play the big edition at the World Cup when they would meet the English in the group stage.
For the Scots, it would be their first World Cup appearance since 1998 and a whole generation of players and fans don’t know what it’s like to be involved in the biggest football tournament in the world. But Steve Clarke’s team now seems ready. Ahead of the clash between Scotland and Ukraine, we venture a prediction that the Bravehearts will walk away victorious in this match.
There’s no telling what Ukraine will be capable of on Wednesday. Oleksandr Petrakov’s side have yet to play a serious match this year and what’s happening at home doesn’t make it any easier to focus completely on the football.
Scotland – Statistics & current form
The Scots have played quite a strong qualifying campaign for the World Cup by their standards. With their return to the big football stage at EURO 2021, it is fair to say that the Bravehearts are clearly on the up. Coach Steve Clarke has been instrumental in giving the British a chance to return to the World Cup after 24 years.
Bravehearts’ strong series
Scotland have won their last six competitive matches and are unbeaten in eight overall. Among others, there was a win against Denmark and a draw against Poland. Therefore, we assume that the home side will not lose after 90 minutes and also look at the odds for the double chance 1X.
in the clash between Scotland and Ukraine.
The match against Ukraine was supposed to take place in March, but had to be cancelled for well-known reasons. Instead, the Scots have played test matches against Poland and Austria, drawing 1-1 and 2-2 respectively. But things will get really serious on Wednesday, when the participation in the World Cup will be at stake at Hampden Park,
Some Scots had to play for their clubs at the weekend, among them Andy Robertson and Scott McKenna. By Wednesday, however, all players should have had enough rest to be fully fit again. The only absence that should really hurt Steve Clarke is the absence of Kieran Tierney. Nathan Patterson, however, should be fit in time to make up for that.
Predicted line-up of Scotland:
Gordon – Robertson, Hanley, Hendry, Patterson – McTominay, McGregor, Gilmour – McGinn, Adams, Christie – Coach: Clarke
Last matches played by Scotland:
Friendly match
30/03/2022 – Austria 2 – 2 Scotland
25/03/2022 – Scotland 1 – 1 Poland
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. F
16/11/2021 – Scotland 2 – 0 Denmark
12/11/2021 – Moldova 0 – 2 Scotland
13/10/2021 – Faroe Islands 0 – 1 Scotland
Ukraine – Statistics & current form
What can the Ukraine team bring to the pitch at the moment? That is the big question to ask ahead of the crucial matches in World Cup qualifying. Playing time at home is at a standstill. Many national players are therefore keeping fit with training sessions and are active in charity matches. However, Oleksandr Petrakov’s team will certainly lack the competitive toughness.
Without competition practice to Glasgow
It will be predominantly down to the legionnaires from England, Italy or Portugal to carry the team on Wednesday. Andriy Yarmolenko, Oleksandr Zinchenko or Roman Yaremchuk are likely to be challenged above all. But one thing should be clear: The Ukrainians will compete with great morale and try to put a smile on the faces of their compatriots back home with a victory.
For many players, however, there is more at stake. It will probably not be possible to play in Ukraine in the coming years. Therefore, the players who are under contract with domestic clubs will also be playing for a foreign club. On balance, however, the circumstances surrounding Oleksandr Petrakov’s team make it impossible to predict a win for the visitors between Scotland and Ukraine.
How fit the Ukraine team will be remains to be seen. Apart from a few charity matches, among others in Mönchengladbach, where the legionnaires were not involved, this team has no competitive experience. After all, pretty much all the stars of the Ukrainian team should be in the game on Wednesday in Glasgow.
Predicted line-up of Ukraine:
Bushchan – Sobol, Matvienko, Zabarnyi, Tymchyk – Stepanenko, Malinovskyi, Zinchenko – Tsygankov, Yarmolenko, Yaremchuk – Coach: Petrakov
Last matches played by Ukraine:
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. D
17/11/2021 – Bosnia and Herzegovina 0 – 2 Ukraine
Friendly match
12/11/2021 – Ukraine 1 – 1 Bulgaria
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. D
13/10/2021 – Ukraine 1 – 1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
09/10/2021 – Finland 1 – 2 Ukraine
Friendly match
09/09/2021 – Czech Republic 1 – 1 Ukraine
Scotland – Ukraine Direct comparison / H2H Ranking
In fact, the national teams from Scotland and Ukraine have only met twice before. They met in a group in the qualifiers for the 2008 World Cup in Austria and Switzerland. Although two teams won their tickets in the end, the Scots and Ukrainians were only spectators because they only finished third and fourth behind Italy and France.
The direct comparison is even. Both teams won their home matches. Ukraine first won 2-0 at home in Kiev, while the Scots won the return leg 3-1 at Hampden Park after goals from Kenny Miller, Lee McCulloch and James McFadden. Ukraine only managed to get a goal back through superstar Andriy Shevchenko.
Scotland – Ukraine Tip
The Scots will be on fire and looking to take the next step towards the World Cup in Qatar in front of their home crowd. The Bravehearts have waited 24 years to play in a World Cup. At the moment, the team seems to be ready. After all, they have not lost in eight games. The Scots have even won all of their last six competitive matches.
In addition, there is the home advantage. There is always a great atmosphere at Hampden Park. Behind the Ukraine team, on the other hand, there is a big question mark. The last official international match took place more than half a year ago.
The Ukrainians will certainly earn a lot of sympathy in Glasgow and will do everything for success with great morale. However, many players have not had proper match practice for months and that could possibly be the visitors’ undoing on Wednesday, even though they have great quality in their squad. In the end, we decided to play the odds on the Bravehearts progressing between Scotland and Ukraine
