Scotland vs Switzerland Predictions
Scotland host Switzerland at Hampden in a likely competitive Nations League contest on Tuesday.
Scotland created plenty in Slovenia without scoring, while Switzerland impressed in their easy win against North Macedonia.
I fancy BTTS, while the Scots look a little overpriced in the double chance market.
Scotland Can Respond at Hampden
- Scotland have seen BTTS in 4 of their last 5 home matches
- Scotland are unbeaten in 5 of their last 6 home matches (competitive fixtures)
- Switzerland failed to win their last 2 matches against Switzerland
- Switzerland failed to win 7 of their last 12 matches
- Switzerland have seen BTTS in 6 of their last 9 matches
- Switzerland failed to win 7 of their last 12 matches
Scotland and Switzerland Share Recent Spoils
Scotland and Switzerland have met on just two occasions since 1996. Ally McCoist scored a famous winner in a Euro 1996 group phase fixture.
The spoils were shared in a 1-1 draw in their most recent fixture. Scott McTominay put Scotland ahead before Xherdan Shaqiri equalised in that contest at Euro 2024 two years ago.
Scotland Show Promise in Slovenia
Scotland face their first Nations League home fixture of the year after a frustrating goalless draw in Slovenia.
Sebastien Pocognoli's first match since replacing Steve Clarke offered a positive glimpse at the future despite a lack of quality in the final third.
The Scots dominated the second half and should have taken all three points at Stozice Stadium. Final match stats underlined their improvement after the break.
Pocognoli’s side registered 17 shots and an xG of 2.16, while Slovenia managed just four efforts and 0.45 xG. The hosts had only one shot in the second half.
Robbie Ure hit the post, while Oli McBurnie, Billy Gilmour and Kieron Bowie all spurned opportunities to secure the points.
Scotland had not played since their disappointing first-round exit at the World Cup. Despite beating Haiti, the Scots failed to advance from the group phase after successive defeats against Morocco and Brazil.
Recent Hampden fixtures should give Pocognoli’s new charges confidence this week. The hosts claimed a vital 4-2 win against Denmark in their last competitive game in Glasgow last year, while they have won four of their last five (excluding friendlies) at Hampden.
Over a longer period, Scotland lost just two of 14 previous competitive home fixtures.
Switzerland Make Strong Start
Switzerland make the trip to Glasgow after an emphatic 3-0 win against North Macedonia in Skopje.
Remo Freuler opened the scoring before Zeki Amdouni added a second in the first half. Amdouni struck again after the break to seal a routine win for Murat Yakin’s side.
The Swiss dominated, registering 23 shots to just two in response from the hosts. Final xG totals of 2.48-0.06 reflected the ease of their victory.
Competing in the Nations League after a strong run at the World Cup, Switzerland are unbeaten in all but one of their last 12 matches.
Switzerland return to Nations League action after a strong World Cup campaign, having lost only one of their last 12 matches.
Yakin’s men have struggled to turn draws into wins, with six of those 12 fixtures finishing level. They also conceded in nine of them.
Their away record in the Nations League offers Scotland further encouragement. Switzerland have lost seven of their last ten matches on the road in this competition.
Scotland vs Switzerland Squads & Team News
Scotland Squad
Goalkeepers: Scott Bain, Angus Gunn, Liam Kelly, Jon McCracken
Defenders: Luis Binks, Josh Doig, Colby Donovan, Luke Graham, Jack Hendry, Aaron Hickey, Scott McKenna, Nathan Patterson, Andy Robertson, Stephen Welsh
Midfielders: Ryan Christie, Lewis Ferguson, Billy Gilmour, Lennon Miller, John McGinn, Josh McPake, Kristi Montgomery
Forwards: Kieron Bowie, Findlay Curtis, Ben Gannon-Doak, Oli McBurnie, Robbie Ure, James Wilson
Head coach Pocognoli is unlikely to make too many changes from his first XI this week. Kieron Bowie, Ryan Christie and Ben Gannon-Doak are among those in contention should the recently-appointed boss freshen his selection.
Scott McTominay, Che Adams, Kieran Tierney and Kenny McLean are notable injury absentees for the hosts.
Pocognoli was happy with the Scots' improvement after the interval in Slovenia.
"I think we had two games in the same game, but you can analyse in a positive way both of them.
"First half, was not what we expected in terms of structure; we were in between for the press, actually we were a little bit surprised about the formation of Slovenia, but at half-time we fixed this, and you can see that the second half was much better."
Switzerland Squad
Goalkeepers: Gregor Kobel, Yvon Mvogo, Marvin Keller
Defenders: Manuel Akanji, Zachary Athekame, Ricardo Rodriguez, Nico Elvedi, Adrian Bajrami, Eray Comert, Sascha Britschgi, Isaac Schmidt
Midfielders: Johan Manzambi, Dan Ndoye, Ardon Jashari, Djibril Sow, Remo Freuler, Fabian Rieder, Michel Aebischer, Alvyn Sanches, Joel Monteiro, Vincent Sierro
Forwards: Zeki Amdouni, Winsley Boteli Mokango, Cedric Itten
Swiss boss Yakin is likely to make some changes to his selection. Sascha Britschgi, Djibril Sow and Michel Aebischer are among those hoping to earn recalls to the first XI.
Granit Xhaka is unavailable following a fake COVID-19 vaccination certificate scandal, while Aurele Amenda and Denis Zakaria are sidelined by injury.
Isaac Schmidt, Vincent Sierro and Joel Monteiro have been added to the initial squad selection.
Zeki Amdouni should lead the attack after scoring twice and assisting the opener in Skopje.
Zachary Athekame supplied two assists on his debut and is expected to keep his place in the starting lineup.