Scotland vs Hungary Euro 2024 prediction: Can the Tartan Army advance to make history?
The final round of Euro 2024 Group A fixtures sees Scotland and Hungary clashing in Stuttgart.
Scotland vs Hungary Euro 2024 prediction: Can the Tartan Army advance?
Scotland vs Hungary latest prediction
As we head into the final round of group stage fixtures, it’s all or nothing for Scotland. The Tartan Army have never made it to the knockout stages of a major tournament, with eight group-stage exits at the World Cup and three at the European Championship. They’ve also won just two of their 11 European Championship matches. It was an agonising exit at Euro 96, when the Netherlands scored a late consolation goal against England in their final group stage game to make the knockout stages ahead of Scotland on goals scored — being tied on points, head-to-head record and goal difference.
Steve Clarke’s men opened Euro 2024 with a 5-1 humiliation at the hands of hosts Germany, but they kept their hopes alive with a 1-1 draw against Switzerland last time out. The performance was much better from Scotland, though there were a few errors still, including one that lead to Xherdan Shaqiri’s wonder strike to cancel out Scott McTominay’s opener. In a funny, and somewhat predictable, occurrence, all six Scotland players to score at a European Championship have had surnames starting with Mc.
McTominay’s performance came after he was pushed further forward by Clarke, with Billy Gilmour coming into the team deeper alongside Callum McGregor. That move will likely see McTominay go toe-to-toe with Liverpool rival Dominik Szoboszlai, who fills the No.10 spot for Hungary.
Hungary, meanwhile, are trying to avoid another European Championship without victory. Having been placed in a tough group at Euro 2020, Hungary drew two and lost one of their three group-stage games, exiting the competition. It came after they had made it to the round of 16 at Euro 2016. It’s been two defeats so far for Hungary at Euro 2024, beaten by Switzerland and Germany.
With a goal difference of -4 accompanying their zero points, Hungary know that they are also relying on results elsewhere to qualify for the knockout stages. Since UEFA added in qualification for the four best third-placed teams to the European Championship, three out of eight have made it through with three points. However, only one of those had a negative goal difference. We also saw four teams on three points fail to qualify (out of four).
Scotland and Hungary meet in the final round of fixtures on June 23 at the Stuttgart Arena at 8pm (UK time).
With so much on the line, there is a chance that this game will be cagey. But both sides could also fly out of the blocks to make their mark. Both of Scotland’s games at Euro 2024 so far have seen a goal scored inside the opening 15 minutes. They conceded to Florian Wirtz in the 10th minute, while McTominay opened the scoring against Switzerland in the 13th minute. Hungary, meanwhile, conceded to Switzerland in the 12th minute.
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Scotland latest team news
Clarke found a much better balance in Scotland’s second group match, despite Ryan Porteus missing the match through suspension — he’ll also miss this game. The Tartan Army will likely start with the same line-up against Hungary, with the exception of Kieran Tierney, who will be sorely missed after picking up an injury against Switzerland.
Hungary latest team news
Hungary simply must win here, no exceptions. Will Rossi be tempted to field a more attacking line-up with Scotland missing two key defenders, or will he stick with a side that has so far remained competitive despite losing twice?
It remains to be seen, but you can be sure key players like Dominik Szoboszlai and Milos Kerkez will be present.
Scotland vs Hungary head-to-head
A rarely played international fixture rounds off Scotland’s group stage with a first meeting with Hungary since a 2018 friendly. Before that friendly, which Scotland won 1-0, the two nations hadn’t played each other since 2004, which, in turn, was the first time since the 1980s. The nations have followed a similar path in having their heydays in the 20th century and then becoming resurgent again in modern times.
| Scotland vs Hungary H2H | |||||||
| Date | Score | Ground | |||||
| 27/03/18 | 1-0 | Groupama Arena, Budapest | |||||
| 18/08/04 | 0-3 | Hampden Park, Glasgow | |||||
How to watch Scotland vs Hungary live
The final round of Group A will see Scotland and Hungary clash, with the game set to be broadcast live on BBC One, as well as online via BBC iPlayer.
The final group games are played simultaneously, of course, so the host broadcaster will play both final group games on separate channels.
