Prediction: Czech Republic vs Scotland

7th October 2010

The two teams will probably be fighting for the second place in the group, so there is a lot at stake for both sides here. The Czechs are aiming to make amends for the home defeat to Lithuania, whereas the Scots would probably settle for a draw after the narrow escape against Liechtenstein at Hampden Park.

Once one of the best European sides on international stage have been largely struggling over the last few years with the national team chiefs still looking for new Nedved, Poborski and Koller. Unaccustomed to poor results, the Czechs have had a hard time coping with the disappointing performances of the national team and it seems as though the atmosphere surrounding the squad has never been worse. The opening defeat to Lithuania only added fuel to the fire, leaving Michal Bilek’s men to wonder how the hell they are going to turn things around. With players extremely low on spirits, they will have a hard time playing defence-minded Scots, especially without starting strikers Baros and Fenin, who are both sidelined with injuries. Add to that the poor form of their replacements Necid and Bednar, and you will see that the hosts face a tough task in finding the key to unlock Scotland defence. Seeing this is a must-win game for the Czechs, there is no doubt they will attack the visitors from the off but even so scoring a goal might prove to be an impossible task.

Scotland have hardly impressed themselves at the start of the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, having struggled for so long against minnows Liechtenstein but they somehow managed to overturn the deficit and handed boss Craig Levein the victory on his home debut. The point brought from Lithuania has been given a whole new meaning after Raimondas Zutautas’ side shocked Czech Republic in Olomuc and now the Scots are aware that another stalemate would not be such a poor result after all. Despite missing a couple of important midfielders, Craig Levein will be able to field a very good defensive side in Prague with the Scots set to line up in 4-5-1 formation. Scott Brown, Paul Hartley, Lee McCulloch and Kevin Thomson are all unavailable, while Kenny Miller is not guaranteed a starting place in spite of scoring 11 goals in 8 games this season.

Conclusion

Even with Rosicky and Plasil in midfield, the Czechs will find it hard to break the hard-working Scots, as their strikers are completely out of form and we should see a very tight game. The visitors will be fully focused on breaking the opposition attacks and while Scotland pose a little threat up front, they look capable of keeping this Czech Republic at bay, so my advice is to bet on draw.

Verdict: Draw (X)

Best Odds: 13/5

Bookmaker: Victor Chandler