Scotland vs England LIVE: Result and final score as Lionesses denied Olympic place despite huge win
Scotland 0-6 England: The Lionesses and Team GB were denied as the Netherlands struck in stoppage time to top Nations League Group A on goal difference
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Your support makes all the difference.England blew Scotland away with a powerful 6-0 victory but on a night of high drama fell short of making the Nations League knockout stages as Team GB’s hopes of reaching next summer’s Olympic Games were ended.
A conflict of interest was widely discussed before the game as a victory for the Lionesses - the nominated nation on behalf of Team GB in qualification for Paris next year - was the only way any Scottish players would be able to feature at the Games.
Pedro Martinez Losa’s side, already relegated from League A1 ahead of their final game, were simply outclassed by a visiting side but the Netherlands’ 4-0 win over Belgium saw them top the group.
Defender Alex Greenwood headed the opener after 12 minutes, two goals in a minute by Lauren James and another by Beth Mead just before the break had the game done by the interval.
Striker Fran Kirby added a fifth with Lucy Bronze heading in what looked a crucial final goal in the third minute of added time - but Damaris Egurrola’s late brace for the Netherlands meant they pipped Sarina Wiegman’s side on goal difference.
Follow all the action from Hampden Park below plus get the latest odds and tips right here:
Scotland vs England - team news coming shortly
We’re just a few minutes away from getting the confirmed line-ups for tonight’s fixture - will we see any surprises?
Key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League clash with Scotland
England’s Nations League group games conclude on Tuesday with a clash against Scotland at Hampden Park.
There’s plenty on the line and a host of interesting narratives that could play out. Let’s take a look at some of those talking points ahead of the contest:
Key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League clash with Scotland
England are the nominated home nation for securing a Paris 2024 Olympics qualification spot.
Kiera Walsh backs Mary Earps to bounce back after Netherlands display
England battled back to triumph on Friday after being 2-0 down at half-time, with the second Dutch goal
coming when Mary Earps got a glove to Lineth Beerensteyn’s tame shot but could not stop it crossing the line.
Earps afterwards said she had “really let the team down”, something Wiegman then said was not the case and Walsh has seconded her managers words and said the Manchester United keeper is in full spirits once again.
“Mary has saved us in so many situations. For me, she’s always been there in the big moments for us, so she really doesn’t need to take that on herself, she said.
“It has to go past 10 other players before it gets to her and I think there were numerous mistakes leading up to that one.
“She’s in good spirits now I think. Even at breakfast this morning she was making jokes about it. Mary’s delivered before so I’m pretty sure she will again.”
‘No way’ Scotland let England win to aid Olympic hopes, Sarina Wiegman insists
England boss Sarina Wiegman has stressed there is “no way” Scotland are going to “give away” the game when the sides meet at Hampden Park on Tuesday in their final Nations League group fixture.
The second-placed Lionesses may need a high-scoring win against the already-relegated Scots to claim top spot in the group, the finish required to keep Wiegman’s team in contention to secure Paris 2024 Olympic qualification for Great Britain. With England success on that front the only way Scottish players will be able to play at the Games, the game has a rather peculiar subplot to it.
However, the England coach is expecting nothing but the sternest from tonight’s opposition.
“if you have seen our group, seen Scotland and know the history of Scotland and England, then there’s no way that they are going to give away this game. They really want to beat England and we want to beat them, of course,” Weigman said.
“There’s such a rivalry that that is absolutely not going to be the case. We saw it when we played in England (a 2-1 win for England in September).”
England, Scotland and the ‘strange’ dilemma of Olympics qualification
Anyone but England? Maybe not this time. Scotland’s best chance of reaching the Olympics as part of Team GB is by losing heavily to the Lionesses at Hampden, as England travel north requiring “as many goals as possible” to decide a confusing set of permutations in Nations League Group A1.
The build-up to what should be a grand staging of a historic football rivalry has instead been dominated by what England, who are the nominated nation when it comes to Olympics qualification, require at Hampden and whether Scotland will help or hinder the “Auld Enemy”, as well as themselves.
Ahead of tonight’s fixture, have a read of Jamie Braidwood’s preview:
England, Scotland and the ‘strange’ dilemma of Olympics qualification
Scotland’s best chance of reaching the Olympics as part of Team GB is by losing heavily to the Lionesses at Hampden – but the hosts are unlikely to roll over against the ‘Auld Enemy’
What would the Lionesses then need to do to qualify for the Olympics?
Should England top the group, the task then is simple - reach the Nations League final to be sure of their place at the Olympics next summer. As the nominated side for Team GB. England will go through to the semi-finals if they top Group A1.
Both Nations League finalists will qualify for the Paris Games - unless one of those teams is France, who qualify automatically.
If France reach the Nations final, the automatic qualification spot will go to the winner of the third place playoff in the Nations League finals.
France and Spain have booked their place in the semi-finals, while Germany and Denmark are battling out for the final spot in Group A3.
Scotland vs England - How can England finish top of Group A1?
There’s a lot more than just the result riding on this game, with England’s hopes of qualifying Great Britain for the Olympics on the line. To do that, they must first finish top of Group A1.
After five games played, England and the Netherlands are level on nine points: with three wins and two defeats. The teams have identical head-to-head records after the Netherlands won 2-1 in their home fixture and England won 3-2 at Wembley.
Therefore, the Netherlands have the advantage because of their greater goal difference across the group. The Netherlands have scored 10 goals and conceded six, giving the Dutch a goal difference of +4, while England have scored nine and conceded eight, giving the Lionesses a goal difference of +1.
Ahead of their final fixtures, England need to win by at least three goals more than the Netherlands, if both sides win, otherwise they will qualify if the Dutch drop points against Belgium and the Lionesses beat Scotland
Make sense?
Scotland vs England - predicted lineups
We should get confirmed lineups in about 50 minutes, but here is how we think both teams might line up:
Scotland: MacIver; Corsie, Clark, Doherty; Evans, Kerr, MacLean, Cuthbert, Brown; Hanson, Thomas
England: Earps; Bronze, Morgan, Greenwood, Charles; Walsh, Stanway; Mead, James, Hemp; Russo
What is the team news?
Scotland drew 1-1 with Belgium on Friday with Erin Cuthbert on target. Former England goalkeeper Sandy MacIver will line up against the Lionesses after switching allegiances earlier this season. Kirsty Hanson could return to the starting line-up but Scotland are without Caroline Weir, who is out for the season after suffering an ACL injury.
England did not pick up any injuries in Friday’s win over the Netherlands and manager Sarina Wiegman is likely to pick an attack-minded team. The Lionesses did not start with a recognised striker against the Netherlands and Alessia Russo or Rachel Daly could return. Millie Bright was ruled out of England’s squad and there could be further changes in defence after Friday’s display.
How to watch Scotland vs England
The match will kick off at 7:45pm GMT on Tuesday 5 December at Hampden Park, Glasgow.
Scotland vs England will be shown live on BBC One and BBC One Scotland, with coverage kicking off at 7:30pm.
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