Scotland vs England Tips: Betting Preview, Predictions, Odds
England have three wins and two draws from the previous five clashes north of the border, and football betting sites make them strong favourites to win on Tuesday evening (7:45pm, Channel 4).
Scotland will have rarely entered a match with their bitter rivals in such strong form though and will feel confident of ending their winless run against England in front of a packed and raucous Hampden Park.
Goals anticipated at both ends
Steve Clarke’s Scotland side are giving their upmost to rewrite their nation’s football history. The Scots have won their last 11 qualification matches in group stages (across both European Championships and World Cups), the longest ongoing run of any side in Europe, though they did lose their qualifying play-off to Ukraine before Qatar 2022.
They have also won five consecutive games whilst scoring at least twice in every match for the first time since 1949. There is little doubt Scotland will be at Euro 2024 in Germany next summer and indeed their qualification will be confirmed if Norway and Georgia draw while this game is taking place.
While England were uninspiring in their 1-1 draw against Ukraine on Saturday, they hold a very strong record in friendlies.
The advent of the Uefa Nations League means such games are relatively rare these days, but Gareth Southgate’s side have won their last 10 non-competitive games and are unbeaten in 14, a run stretching back over six years.
It’s hard to know how seriously the managers will take this match, Southgate in particular. It's five years since England had an international window with a friendly following a competitive match, and on that occasion the manager made nine changes to his starting XI for the second game.
The fact this is a fierce derby makes wholesale changes less likely and England possess a very strong squad so it may not matter too much in any case.
Equally, the Three Lions needed a 93rd minute goal from Harry Kane to draw the last time they visited Scotland and the hosts are much stronger these days.
As such, a bet on both teams scoring is our choice rather than a match prediction. Neither team has drawn a blank too often recently and both can get on the scoresheet here.
Scotland vs England tips: Expect a few goals
If our previous tip proves correct, it’s reasonable to expect there to be at least three goals too.
Disregarding the previous England-Scotland clash – a tense, goalless draw in the Group Stage of Euro 2020 – the four meetings prior all witnessed over 2.5 goals and saw an average of four in each.
There’s also more chance of a few goals if the managers make several changes to their line ups, with defences (and possibly goalkeepers) less reliable than the established first choice players.
England’s last five mid-season friendlies have all featured exactly three goals, as have both Scotland’s last two and five of their seven non-competitive games in the last half-decade.
With bragging rights the only thing on the line, both teams can cut loose and have some fun. History suggests that this should lead to there being over 2.5 goals.
Scotland vs England goalscorer bets
With opportunities limited at Manchester United, Scott McTominay is playing like a man possessed for Scotland. The 26-year-old has six goals and one assist in qualifying for Euro 2024, the most goal involvements of any player in the competition.
McTominay has also netted six times in his last five appearances for the national side and betting sites make him 15/2 to continue that run against England.
However, while the United man is on a hot streak for Scotland, Steve Clarke’s key man throughout his tenure has been Aston Villa’s John McGinn.
He got an assist in the manager’s first match, a goal in the second and has since amassed 24 direct contributions in total, 11 more than any other player.
With 17 of that tally being goals he has bagged in his last 41 caps, McGinn is worthy of consideration for a goal here.
The Villa midfielder has one Premier League goal in the fledgling 2023/24 season and it came in a 4-0 win against Everton. Having scored past Jordan Pickford three weeks ago, McGinn will fancy he can do so again.
Andrew Beasley is a widely published football writer and voluntary numbers enthusiast. His love of stats provides him with a wealth of insight which can be applied to betting. He provides football betting tips for The Independent.
