Scotland 'have to qualify' for next Euros, says captain Rachel Corsie
- Published
Highlights: Scotland 3-0 Northern Ireland
International friendly: Finland v Scotland |
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Venue: Tampere Stadium, Tampere Date: Tuesday, 18 July Kick-off: 17:00 BST |
Coverage: Watch on BBC Alba, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website & app |
Captain Rachel Corsie says Scotland "have to qualify" for the next European Championships after missing out on successive major finals.
Scotland went to Euro 2017 and the 2019 World Cup but did not feature in England for last summer's Euros and will not be at the upcoming World Cup.
Next year's Euros qualifying campaign will be influenced by this autumn's inaugural Nations League campaign.
"We have to make sure that we give ourselves the best shot," said Corsie.
"We have to qualify. That is a lot of pressure because we've not managed the last two and it's tough and it's getting tougher. It's something that we're all just desperate to achieve. We've honestly got a team that's full of capability but you have to perform.
"The margins are getting so much tighter. It's so, so difficult to qualify, it's going to become even harder because so many of these European countries now are starting to have semi-professional and professional leagues. Almost everyone has players playing all around the world now."
Scotland, who beat Northern Ireland 3-0 on Friday, will face European champions England as well as Belgium and Netherlands in Nations League Group A1 later this year.
Injured Corsie sat out Friday's friendly at Dens Park and also misses out on Tuesday's friendly away to Finland.
Real Madrid's Caroline Weir, Bayern Munich's Sam Kerr and Chelsea's Erin Cuthbert started against Northern Ireland and Weir is expected to captain the side in her 100th Scotland appearance on Tuesday.
"We need these players to really stand up," Corsie told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound. "That's not to put extra pressure on them. They're at these clubs that have those expectations and for us to have them in our national team, it's a huge opportunity.
"It was a good performance [against Northern Ireland]. On the whole, the result's really positive.
"Both Kirsty Hanson and Emma Watson on either wing got a really good run out and showed what they're capable of. These are the positions that ultimately are really key for us. We need players to step up and contribute and make that spot their own.
"We need goals. In the past, that's ultimately what's defined the top teams - being able to get a goal out of nothing, create opportunities and carry that threat."