Norway v Scotland

Norway will play host to Scotland needing to win in order to keep any hopes of qualifying for the 2010 world cup alive. With a victory in this contest, Scotland will eliminate Norway if the are able to win this away day.

The home side have yet to win a match in qualifying having played to 3 draws and 2 losses in their 5 games. They sit in last place of Group 9 with 3 points and sit 1 point behind 4th place Iceland while having 2 matches in hand on them. In their most recent qualifier the side managed by Egil Olsen were losers away from home by a score of 2-0 against the Netherlands.

George Burley’s squad are facing an almost must win scenario going into this contest. While 2 wins in the final 3 games will almost certainly see them through to the next round, Scotland’s final match is at home to Holland meaning that they really better win this match and the next won against Macedonia in order to avoid any surprises. Another aspect complicating matters for Scotland is that this is a very early date for a world cup qualifier and most of their squad are not at ideal match fitness. In their most recent qualifier in April the Scots defeated Iceland by a score of 2-1 behind goals from Fletcher and McCormack. They sit in 2nd place of Group 9 with 7 points, just ahead of 3rd place Macedonia on goal difference but with 1 match in hand.

World Cup Qualifying
Norway v Scotland
Ullevaal Stadion, kick off 1800 hours