International Friendly
Netherlands v Scotland
Friday, 22 March 2024 (8.45pm kick-off, local time)
Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam

Scotland will step up preparations for this summer's UEFA EURO 2024 campaign with Friday night's friendly in Amsterdam.

Steve Clarke, his staff and squad assembled at their Lesser Hampden training base earlier this week, with spirits high ahead of an exciting few months.

While it would be easy and understandable for thoughts to drift to Germany and everything that lies ahead on the biggest stage, attention quickly turned to this warm-up fixture against top-tier opposition.

Previous meetings

Friday's hosts have a slight edge in the head-to-head stats.

Scotland and The Netherlands have faced off on 20 occasions over the years at senior men's level - with the Scots winning six and losing nine.

One that sticks in the memory is the meeting at the 1978 FIFA World Cup in Argentina.

Scotland won 3-2 and, although it was not enough to secure qualification for the knockout stage, Gemmill's stunning solo goal earned plaudits across the globe and is still regularly talked about as one of the greatest World Cup moments of all time.

The last time the two sides met - in a warm-up friendly for UEFA EURO 2020 - a thoroughly enjoyably, competitive affair ended 2-2.

Scotland were without seven players due to Covid-19 precautions but gave a great account of themselves, with Jack Hendry opening the scoring courtesy of a fine strike from the edge of the box.

Memphis Depay scored either side of a Kevin Nisbet effort that looked like it had secured a morale-boosting win for the Scots.

Team news

Grant Hanley has been forced to withdraw from the squad, but there was a welcome return for long-term absentee Craig Gordon - who has had to work hard to battle back from serious injury to reclaim his place in the Scotland senior setup.

Captain Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney also missed out last time, but are back firing on all cylinders to boost the group.

Scott McKenna reported to the camp with a slight knock and is being assessed after sitting out the squad's first training session.

Pre-match thoughts

Assistant Head Coach John Carver is delighted to be back in the thick of it with a squad who are determined to do themselves justice on Friday night and the Euros themselves.

He said: "I've already experienced the excitement, because all I've been doing is going to watch games for the last four months and every time I walk into a stadium, whether in England or Scotland, to watch players, everybody's talking about the Euros.

"The fans are talking about it, people in the boardroom are talking about it and I've got to calm myself down sometimes when it happens.

"There's a huge difference to when we qualified the previous time. I can sense that because it was a difficult situation with Covid, and fans weren't allowed in. Now I've got so many Scottish friends who are coming out of the woodwork looking for tickets!

"When we went across to Germany to look at the facilities, they were saying they were expecting around about 100,000 Scottish people in Germany and that's incredible.

"I can't wait to see that because it was limited crowds the last time we were in the Euros.

"There is a difference for the players and the staff as well. We've learned an awful lot and we've gained more caps. We've already experienced what one European Championship is like and we're going into the second one with that experience behind us. I think that's important.

"You look at any successful team. Once they win that first cup, for example, they usually have a run of success. We qualified for the Euros three years ago, missed out on the World Cup and now we're back in the Euros. That's what you want."

Centre-back Ryan Porteous came of age in a Scotland shirt over the qualification campaign and is doing all he can to make that final squad for Germany. Starting by impressing in training ahead of the friendly double-header.

He said: "These two games are about showing what we can do, particularly in the first game, against the top teams.

"That's why we picked the previous games against England and France, because we want to try and compete against the best and learn how to develop as a team.

"I don't think we're far off. We want to grow on and off the pitch. There are certain things we've analysed from those games and it's a good opportunity for us.

"Hopefully it will make sure we're ready when the time comes.

"I've really enjoyed it. I feel comfortable and you don't get any other feeling like playing for Scotland.

"There's healthy competition. You've got fantastic centre-backs in the group, fantastic players in general. There's a lot of competition but that can only spur me on.

"The manager has always been loyal to me. Even when I wasn't playing for the national team, he was still calling me up to squads and developing me behind the scenes.

"In the last year, hopefully I've shown him that I can be involved. I've played my part in helping us get to the Euros and it's always good to repay someone that's shown a lot of faith in you."

Where to watch

The game will be shown live on Viaplay Sports 1, with a Scottish kick-off time of 7.45pm.

Tickets

The game in Amsterdam is a sell-out, but tickets are available now for the visit of Northern Ireland to Hampden Park, our final home pre-Euros friendly against Finland and our UEFA Nations League matches. 

You can secure your seat here.