Who Scotland may start in Munich

---

Scotland kicks off the 17th edition of the European Championship against host nation Germany, but who is up for playing spoiler?

---

By Michael Wood

Goalkeeper – Angus Gunn

The Norwich City shot-stopper has established himself as the number one after taking the gloves from Craig Gordon – who has fallen behind Scotland no.2 Zander Clark at Heart of Midlothian – when he was recovering from that horrific leg break last year.

Left Center Back – Kieran Tierney

Integral to the system: the player frozen out of Arsenal can underlap the left back or shuffle along into the role as Scotland morphs into a 4-2-3-1 from their base 3-4-2-1 set-up, depending on the match situation. He will help on that side against the wonderfully talented Jamal Musiala.

Center Back – Grant Hanley

Historical precedent would dictate that the Canaries captain will be chosen over Championship rival Liam Cooper – a similar player but left-footed. He has to contend with a deceptively monolithic Kai Havertz in an aerial duel.

Right Center Back – Jack Hendry

He is more trusted to retain possession of the ball and play that tricky pass to those ahead of him down the right than Watford’s Ryan Porteous. In addition, he is more likely to stride into midfield with the ball to break through the initial German press but will have to deal with Florian Wirtz cutting in from the left.

Left Wing Back – Andrew Robertson (captain)

The Liverpool defender is poised to win his 50th cap as skipper and is the top-assist maker in the squad with 10 – including two at Hampden Park last Friday against Finland. He will stretch into the final third to combine with the two attacking midfielders and centre forward, giving Musiala something to ponder.

Left Defensive Midfielder – Callum McGregor

The Celtic captain has not seen his levels drop in a Scotland shirt since the resumption of football post-Covid-19. He marshalls the area exemplary without fouling while letting Robertson and Tierney get on with things. His role will be to contend with the playmaking İlkay Gündoğan.

Right Defensive Midfielder – Billy Gilmour

Metronomic, scanning, always on the half-turn looking to progress the ball and rarely loses possession – that calmness required in a pressured Allianz Arena – and the game has to flow through him while seeking to disrupt Havertz’s rhythm and bait him into doing something stupid.

Right Wing Back – Anthony Ralston

The only right-footed full back with competitive caps in the squad, and while the weak spot in terms of technical ability – and, in reality, the third choice for Scotland behind Aaron Hickey and Nathan Patterson – the backup to Alistair Johnston at Celtic has never shown himself up on the international stage – although, he will not have faced a player with the quality of Wirtz for the national team.

Left Attacking Midfielder – John McGinn

Scotland Football Writer’s Association’s International Player of the Year on four consecutive occasions after netting 16 goals in 55 games between 2019 and 2023, a feat that catapulted him into seventh on the all-time Scottish top scorers list.

Affable, personable and relatable are merely a bonus for the vice-captain who is a fantastic progressor of the ball and effective as a tackler and interceptor on the defensive end when pressing the opposition, which will be the retiring Toni Kroos on Friday.

Right Attacking Midfielder – Scott McTominay

The gradual move from centre back into the final third has unleashed his effectiveness, illustrated by his anointment as SFWA International Player of the Year for 2023-24 after netting seven times in qualifying, more than Norway’s Erling Halland (6), Serbia’s Aleksandar Mitrović and Slovenia’s Benjamin Šeško (5).

Now third in command, and at six-foot-four inches tall, he uses his verticality as a threat aerially. In addition, he will have to be eager to run off the Bundesliga winner Robert Andrich when darting into the box as he has proven for Manchester United, that he can find the back of the net in those circumstances.

Center Forward – Ryan Christie

There are a few avenues to go down with this choice. Joshua Kimmich is likely to invert to bolster the Germans’ midfield to make sure they are not disadvantaged numerically with Maximilian Mittelstädt bombing on in the space vacated by Wirtz ahead of him.

So who is tasked with going up against the centre back pairing of Antonio Rüdiger and Johnthan Tah?

The out-and-out striker: the newly promoted Ché Adams, the unanimous Premiership Player of the Year Lawrence Shankland, or late inclusion and still age-group eligible Tommy Conway are conventional options.

Converted winger: James Forrest from the right or Lewis Morgan off the left; either could nip that Germany back-line into following them, allowing for bursting runs from McTominay into space to test an error-strewn 38-year-old Manuel Neuer.

A shadow striker: Christie has performed in this role in the past but was in instances that Lyndon Dykes started, and it is not the role best suited to him. However, the more midfielders involved in the game could counteract and frustrate Germany – who will possess more of the ball – as Christie has developed industriously at Bournemouth under Andoni Iraola and is a thistle in opponents’ sides as he harries them while pressing.

---

(Picture credit: PA)