Croatia vs Scotland prediction, stats, tips & team news
Scotland will be hoping to get up and running in the Uefa Nations League when they travel to face Croatia on Saturday 12th October.
Steve Clarke’s side have lost both of their League A1 matches so far, while Croatia have three points from their two games.
Last team to score: Croatia (odds TBC)
Alongside their agonising defeats comes the fact that Scotland have conceded the last goal in each of their two Uefa Nations League matches so far. In fact, Scotland have conceded the last goal in eight of their nine games across all competitions in 2024. At the same time, Croatia have scored the last goal in their two Uefa Nations League matches.
Croatia to win and BTTS (odds TBC)
Croatia’s win over Poland extended their unbeaten run in their home country to three matches. Scotland, meanwhile, haven’t won a competitive game outside of Scotland since a 3-0 win over Cyprus in September 2023. Since then, Scotland have lost five games and drawn once.
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How to watch Croatia vs Scotland live
Croatia vs Scotland is scheduled for 5pm on Saturday 12th October and will be broadcast live in the UK, though the channel is yet to be confirmed.
How both teams go into Croatia vs Scotland
The 2024-25 Uefa Nations League sees Scotland at the top table. They were promoted last time out and have the bragging rights of the British nations, the only team in League A. But it’s not been a good start for Steve Clarke’s men.
After ending Euro 2024 winless, Scotland have carried that form over to the Uefa Nations League. And both defeats have been agonising. Scotland went 2-0 down in their opening game against Poland but pulled it back to 2-2 and looked to be holding on for a point. But they conceded a penalty in the seventh minute of second-half injury time, eventually falling 3-2. They then took the lead in their next game against Portugal, but lost 2-1 with Cristiano Ronaldo’s winner coming in the 88th minute.
Croatia also disappointed at Euro 2024, and their group stage exit was more of a shock. Although they were placed in a group alongside Italy and Spain, Croatia would have hoped for qualification as one of the best third-placed teams at the very least. But their two points from three matches was not enough.
The winless run was then stretched for four games as Croatia lost their Uefa Nations League opener against Portugal, with all goals coming in the first half. But they did bounce back to beat Poland, leapfrogging them on the better head-to-head record. Second place in League A of the Uefa Nations League secures a spot in the quarter-finals, while third have to deal with a relegation play-off. Bottom of the group will suffer automatic relegation. This is a must-win for Scotland.
Croatia host Scotland at Stadion Maksimir in Zagreb on Saturday 12th October at 5pm.
Croatia team news
Josip Stanisic and Lovro Majer are still injured, having missed the September break, and they haven’t been called up for Croatia’s latest squad. There is also no Borna Barisic. However, both Luka Modric and Ivan Perisic remain in the squad, with Andrej Kramaric hoping to join the 100-cap club in the next two matches.
Scotland team news
Greg Taylor missed the September matches through injury but has been featuring regularly for Celtic, so should be available to return. The case is the same for James Forrest and Che Adams, with the latter in good goalscoring form this season for Torino.
Croatia vs Scotland head-to-head
Scotland went unbeaten in their first five games against Croatia, with three draws and two wins. Those two wins ended the run of three draws, with Scotland tasting victory in qualifying for the 2014 World Cup. But Croatia won the most recent match, a 3-1 victory in the Euro 2020 group stage.
| Croatia vs Scotland H2H | |||||||
| Date | Score | Ground | |||||
| 22/06/21 | Croatia 3-1 Scotland | Hampden Park, Glasgow | |||||
| 15/10/13 | Scotland 2-0 Croatia | Hampden Park, Glasgow | |||||
| 07/06/13 | Croatia 0-1 Scotland | Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb | |||||
| 26/03/08 | Scotland 1-1 Croatia | Hampden Park, Glasgow | |||||
| 01/09/01 | Scotland 0-0 Croatia | Hampden Park, Glasgow | |||||
| 11/10/00 | Croatia 1-1 Scotland | Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb | |||||
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