Scotland Men's Football Team

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Here's how you can keep across tonight's international friendly between Scotland and Northern Ireland at Hampden Park:

You can watch LIVE on BBC Scotland and BBC Three from 19:30 GMT.

You can listen LIVE on BBC Radio Scotland from 18:00 GMT.

And you can follow LIVE text updates on the BBC Sport website and app.

Phil Goodlad is joined by Mark Atkinson, sports editor for The Scotsman and Northern Irish broadcaster Michael Clarke to preview Scotland’s friendly with Northern Ireland.

They also take a look at the latest in Aberdeen’s search for a new manager and ask if Michael O’Neill would be a good fit for the job.

Listen to the full episode here.

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland

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Scott McTominay says he was never going to "spit the dummy out" when asked to play as a centre-back for Scotland.

The Manchester United midfielder was frequently used on the right side of a back three during Scotland's route to - and during - Euro 2020.

Now showing his goalscoring prowess for club and country, the 27-year-old admits he much prefers playing in the middle of the park and making an impact in an attacking sense.

"The manager asked me if I could do a job bringing the ball into midfield and defending, obviously, whenever the opposition had the ball," McTominay said. "That was fine, it was no problem.

"I've always seen myself as a number eight and someone who likes to carry the ball and get into the box and and score goals and make things happen.

"But I'm not going to spit my dummy out and say I don't want to play, that's not in my nature in my whole way growing up through the [Manchester United] academy.

"I had to play up front in the Under 21s a couple of times just because that was what was best for the team and I look back with great memories of that."

Dutch great Rafael van der Vaart criticised the Netherlands' display in Friday's 4-0 win over Scotland and believes the Scots should have won by the same scoreline. (Herald - subscription required), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish Gossip

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Steven Beacom, the Belfast Telegraph's chief sports writer, says Scotland will start Tuesday's friendly against Northern Ireland as "big favourites", but expects the visitors to play "without fear" at Hampden.

Scotland are currently on a six-game winless streak, but Beacom expects them to end that run against Michael O'Neill's side.

"Scotland are going to be big favourites in front of a passionate crowd," Beacom told Good Morning Scotland.

"What you will see is a young Northern Ireland side who play without fear. Scotland are going to dominate possession, and it will be up to NI to soak that up and hit them on the break.

"Northern Ireland have pace about them with Connor Bradley and Isaac Price, but Scotland will fancy this. They'll think it's a great chance to end their poor run of results.

"I can't wait to see Bradley's match-up with Andy Robertson, who has been like a mentor to him at Liverpool. That's going to be fascinating."

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland

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Steve Clarke has backed captain Andy Robertson for his strong post-match comments in the aftermath of Scotland's demoralising defeat in Amsterdam on Friday.

The Liverpool left-back said the squad were "embarrassed" by their collapse to The Netherlands, warning a repeat "can't happen" at the summer's Euros or his side will be "looking at the exit".

But his national team manager is firmly behind the high standards the Premier League and Champions League winner demands, and says he expects similar throughout the Scotland camp.

"That's what we need from everybody in the squad," Clarke said. "We always try to set the bar as high as we can. We want to improve.

"I keep saying there's improvement in the group, I think for long spells in the game the other night you could maybe get a glimpse of that improvement that I speak about, but then towards the end we didn't do what we were good at and that's why the score line went the way it went."

"A lot of what we spoke about in training and what we tried to do in training we transferred to the pitch and it worked. It worked well for a long time in the game."

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland

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Scotland manger Steve Clarke has been speaking to the media ahead of his side's international friendly with Northern Ireland on Tuesday evening - live on BBC Scotland.

Here are the key points:

• Admits his players “had to pick him up” after the 4-0 defeat to The Netherlands on Friday, as he tends to “sulk a little bit longer" than the squad.

• Says a “win would be nice, with a clean sheet and a good performance”, but then he would “probably” prioritise victory over performance tomorrow against Northern Ireland. Although “has no doubt” his squad can deliver both at Hampden.

• His players just want to “get out on the pitch” and “look to put some right some things that went wrong the other night” in Amsterdam.

• On picking a side to face Northern Ireland, he says his plans haven’t changed after the collapse to The Netherlands. Clarke suggests he may make one less substitution than he originally planned.

• After captain Andy Robertson branded their capitulation "embarrassing", the manager says he likes hearing the Liverpool left-back and others set the bar high, adding "we want to improve".

We asked who you would like to see start for Scotland against Northern Ireland on Tuesday, following Friday's disappointing result against the Netherlands.

Here's what you had to say:

Graeme: I thought the performance against the Netherlands was far from disastrous but Lawrence Shankland needs to score if he wants to start. I would give him another shot against Northern Ireland but if he can’t perform on Tuesday he should be on the bench in Germany.

Patrick: Personally, I wasn't impressed with Shankland's performance in front of goal. He played well as an all-rounder, but ultimately was ineffective in the final third. In my opinion, I think starting either Che Adams, a promising and fast forward, or Lyndon Dykes, our main aerial threat, would help us significantly in front of goal.

Brodie: Lewis Ferguson in from the beginning please alongside Billy Gilmour. That gives us a defensive and an attacking player in the middle.

Doug: We have to start Tuesday’s game with our best XI and treat it like a competitive match. We can’t afford not to win this game from a morale point of view. A goalkeeping change is also needed.

Lewis: Go with the same starting XI, there is no need to change it. Play with the same level of intensity as Friday night and the goals will come. Then look to see out the game with a clean sheet. Three wins and three clean sheets in these next three friendlies will do wonders for confidence.

Anon think there has to be a real discussion about Nathan Patterson. I was his biggest backer but honestly the boy doesn't look sharp of mind. We can't go up against the big guns with him at right wing-back.

Ryan: Ferguson has got to start for me. He's only started one game for Scotland in an attacking midfield role and deserves a chance to start in the position he plays for Bologna.

Despite an impressive performance from the Scots, it was an ultimately disappointing night against the Netherlands on Friday.

What changes should Steve Clarke make to the starting XI for Tuesday's test against Northern Ireland? Does Lawrence Shankland keep his spot up front? Should Lewis Ferguson be in from the start?

Have your say here.

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Anthony Ralston insists Lawrence Shankland "should be proud of himself" despite his missed opportunity against the Netherlands.

The Hearts striker spurned his one clear chance in the 4-0 loss in Amsterdam, but Ralston praised his performance.

"He [Shankland] is a top-quality striker, he’ll be disappointed, I think it took a slight bobble," the right-back said. "He finishes those all the time, but he did well and he should be proud of himself."

Despite the heavy loss, Ralston believed there were positives to take from the game - but admitted Scotland have to maintain high standards when going behind.

"I felt for the majority of the game we did really well, as a squad we felt that," he said. "Had we taken our opportunities we would have been in a better place in the game.

"But we know as a squad what our standards are and when the goals go in it’s not to let that slip which we were disappointed with, but it’s important we bounce back on Tuesday [against Northern Ireland].

"We demand off each other high standards but we’ll analyse the game and where we went wrong and put it right."

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With just three more friendlies before the Euros, it was a far from ideal result for Scotland against the Netherlands.

But how did Scotland's Euro 2024 group stage opponents get on this weekend?

There was an ominous result for opening game opponents Germany - they eased to a friendly victory over tournament favourites France 2-0.

Steve Clarke will have to be wary of a fast start from the host nation, with 20-year-old Bayer Leverkusen forward Florian Wirtz scoring after just seven seconds for Germany.

His first goal for his country would have been the fastest international goal on record had Austria’s Christoph Baumgartner not opened the scoring after six seconds in his country’s friendly against Slovakia earlier on Saturday.

Arsenal's Kai Havertz turned in Jamal Musiala's cutback three minutes into the second half to confirm victory for Julian Nagelsmann's side.

Switzerland played out a fairly uneventful 0-0 draw against Denmark, but suffered a blow when goalkeeper Yann Sommer was forced off with an ankle injury,

The 35-year-old Inter Milan stopper would be first choice for the Euros, so will be hoping to make a speedy recovery.

Scotland's final group stage opponents Hungary were winners in their home game against Turkey, with Dominik Szoboszlai's penalty the only goal of the game.

The win came despite Turkey enjoying more possession and registering double the amount of shots as Hungary.

It continues a strong run for the hosts who are unbeaten since a defeat to Italy in September 2022 (eight wins and five draws).

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Steve Clarke told the Scotland camp their collapse in Amsterdam "can't happen", says Ryan Christie.

The Bournemouth midfielder admits the substitutions made in the 4-0 defeat "didn't pay off", but a meeting with Northern Ireland gives the Scots a chance to put things right.

Asked what the manager told the players post-match, Christie said: "It’s just disappointment, him telling us that that can't happen, the goals we conceded, that can't happen.

"We can't go like that and in tournament football, that could you be potentially out after a result like that and he said we now need to focus on Tuesday and get back to it.

"A win, a good performance and a clean sheet, I think is all in our minds. It's not been an easy six games for us, but this is one we need to get back and try and bounce back.

"It's always going be tough to come on to a game like this. Obviously in these game we're trying to give everyone a chance to try and show what they can do, and unfortunately tonight it didn't pay off, but we had a number of chances before the substitutions came on to get in front or get level and keep a clean sheet as well. I think the goal we conceded, the first one, is disappointing."

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Michael O'Neill has told his Northern Ireland players to expect "a very British game" when they head to Scotland on the back of an encouraging 1-1 friendly draw in Romania.

After calling this the start of a "rebirth" for his young side after a disappointing Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, the national manager saw some encouraging signs in Bucharest on Friday.

Debutant Jamie Reid, at 29 the oldest player in a Northern Ireland starting team with an average age of 23.5, scored just seven minutes in to his international career while emerging talents Conor Bradley, Trai Hume, Shea Charles, Brodie Spencer and Isaac Price caught the eye.

O'Neill picked a pair of friendlies away to Euro 2024-bound sides in order to test his inexperienced side and is ready for another tough task at Hampden Park.

"Scotland will give us a different challenge," he said. "They have a team littered with Premier League players, so it will give our boys a chance to step up and show they can handle the game at that level.

"It's a real challenge for our players, but they'll gain confidence from the game and look forward to Tuesday."

Asked what he would hope to see at Hampden, O'Neill added: "More of the same. We'll watch the game back and there'll be certain aspects where we'll maybe want to be a little bit better with the ball.

"At times, our build-up was disjointed. Romania are a team that will put you under pressure. We knew they would do, we had to play not too many passes in our defensive third and play beyond it, which we did quite well."

O'Neill stressed that he felt his young players "needed a little bit of time and they still do need time".

"We've lost a lot of senior players in the last 12 months and we fast-tracked a lot of the younger players into the team, but they deserve to play," he added.

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Former Scotland forward James McFadden has backed Lawrence Shankland's ability to perform for the national team.

The Hearts striker started in the eventual 4-0 defeat to The Netherlands on Friday - his withdrawal coinciding with the visitors' collapse.

Despite missing the kind of glaring opportunity he's been sticking away with ease in maroon all season, McFadden was impressed with the 28-year-old's performance.

"I thought Shankland's overall play was excellent and we looked better when he was on because he held his position and brought others into play," he said on Sportsound.

"He gets his chance, he doesn't snatch at it or look tense. He knows what he's trying to do.

"If anything he was trying to be too precise by putting it right in the top corner. Then you run the risk of slightly overhitting it.

"But he showed in his all round play he can play in this team. Sometimes you don't get another chance at this level and he has to score. But I'd back him to bounce back."

Rangers winger Ross McCausland is likely to miss out again for Northern Ireland as Michael O'Neill looks to build on Friday's 1-1 draw in Romania when his side face Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday.

But Sunderland centre-half Daniel Ballard returns after missing the trip to Bucharest after his partner gave birth, while Watford left-back Jamal Lewis and Millwall midfielder George Saville could have recovered from injury.

"We're hopeful that Jamal might make it and Daniel will join the squad," O'Neill said. "Unfortunately, it looks like Ross McCausland won't make it. It would have been nice to get Ross the opportunity.

"Certainly, Daniel will give us something, as will Jamal, because we are playing a little bit lopsided with right-footed players playing on the left due to the injury situation.

"If they come in, they will give us a little more strength and added experience."

Even so, O'Neill was full of praise for the "excellent" performance in Bucharest by a youthful side that had an average age of just 23.5.

However, it was Stevenage striker James Reid, winning his first cap aged 29, who gave the visitors an early lead against hosts who are heading to the Euro 2024 finals after winning their qualifying group.

Dennis Man equalised midway through the first half for the Romanians to make sure they remain unbeaten in 12 internationals.

Northern Ireland had a disappointing qualifying campaign, but the friendly draw backed up November's surprise win over their group winners, Denmark.

Of their Scotland-based contingent, Conor McMenamin was a 62nd-minute substitute, while fellow St Mirren midfielder Caolan Boyd-Munce and uncapped Dundee defender Aaron Donnelly were unused substitutes.

We asked for you thoughts as a late capitulation handed Scotland a hiding at the hands of The Netherlands.

Here's a taste of what you had to say:

David: The starting XI were absolutely solid and played the Netherlands off the park up until 70 minutes. A lot to take from the game. Souttar and Ralston, not at this level and it capitulated when they came on. Gilmour showed how valuable he is in the middle of the pitch pulling the strings as him going off really was noticeable.

Rory: Got to keep the faith. We have five or six top-quality players and another couple out injured. Not much beyond this. Makings of a team that can get out of our group, and beyond. We just need to maintain belief and a little bit of luck on the fitness front.

Anon: Sadly too long in the tooth, l remember Argentina. So l don't believe the hype. Basically, glaring chances missed and ripped apart by an overwhelmingly superior opposition. First game Germany at home, nobody wanted this tie - least of all a brittle Scotland.

Ross: I think the scoreline flattered the Dutch to be honest. Scotland played well for long periods in the game and on another day could have had two or three goals themselves.

Anon: The players need to take responsibility for the dismal collapse after 60 minutes. Those subs seemed to drain the confidence, concentration and belief of the whole XI. It was embarrassing, Clarke should be very concerned . This team could get zero points in Germany.

Kenny: I’m not on the Shankland band wagon, scoring at that level is not the same as international football. I don’t see it with McLean. Souttar looked really exposed when he came on but our first team looks really competitive looking beyond the last 20 minutes.

Anon: Decent enough performance, well short upfront, didn't really work. Souttar was awful when he came on, and cost us. Hopefully we'll win the next three before June.

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland in Amsterdam

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Scotland's thumping defeat to The Netherlands is a "handy lesson" in the run-up to the Euros, says defender Ryan Porteous.

Steve Clarke's side seemed to lose their concentration as the Dutch scored three goals in the final 18 minutes after being matched by the Scots' composure and intensity for much of the contest.

"Obviously it's handy to learn this lesson right now," the Watford centre-half said.

"A friendly game it doesn't mean anything going into the Euros, obviously we're going to start the Euros against a similar team in quality in Germany, so you can't let that happen [a similar defeat] or you're almost out the tournament after one game.

"The gaffer has spoken about it. That's why we've taken these kind of games on, it’s playing against these pot one teams - the more you play against them the more you try and get to their level, the more it's going to improve us as a squad.

"Obviously, we've come on leaps and bounds in the last few years, everyone has spoken about that, but we want to kick on now again. Even with being in the Nations League A, you want to go and show that you belong there, so nights like this will help that."