Norway v Scotland: 'Defeating Spain made teams fearful of Scots' - Alex McLeish
- Published
Scott McTominay (centre) scored twice in Scotland's March win over Spain
Euro 2024 qualifying: Norway v Scotland |
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Venue: Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo Date: Saturday, 17 June Kick-off: 17:00 BST |
Coverage: Listen on BBC Radio Scotland Extra, follow live text coverage on the BBC Sport website & app, watch highlights on BBC One Scotland & BBC iPlayer |
Beating Spain "has probably got everybody terrified of playing against Scotland", says Alex McLeish.
Steve Clarke's Scotland have opened Euro 2024 qualifying with home wins against Cyprus and Spain, and visit Norway on Saturday.
McLeish twice managed Scotland and recorded a famous 2007 win in France.
"We've become a little bit fearful for a lot of countries that are going to play against Scotland because of recent results," said McLeish.
"The fact that we've beaten Spain has probably got everybody terrified of playing against Scotland. We've now got that status, we now have that in our belt. The Spanish one elevated us to another level.
"But, of course, we have to reach the same levels, it's as simple as that. Every single game at international level, you have to reach the heights. We can't go into any game with complacency."
Central defender McLeish won 77 caps over a 13-year Scotland career and was asked about how he would play against Norway striker Erling Haaland.
And he joked: "Back in the day, I would've dealt with him in a different way than you can now because of VAR etc.
"What a player he is, he's phenomenal. He is a handful and it's a great challenge for our defenders. You cannot let him be free in that box at all."
'Scotland an inch better than Norway'
Former Celtic striker Harald Brattbakk played 17 times for Norway, scoring five times, and has urged his country not "underestimate" Scotland.
"They've got so many good players," said Brattbakk. "The Scottish squad is maybe player by player an inch better. It's more close than people would think
"We do have two brilliant players in Martin [Odegaard] and Erling and I would say that's also the problem for Norway because we might be depending too much on them."
Norway have one point so far after defeat by Spain and a draw with Georgia but Saturday is their first home fixture in Group A.
"Scotland has got a good start and the Norway team has been I would say struggling," said Brattbakk. "There's a growing concern that they need to get something done.
"A win against Scotland would get us straight into contention again."