Scotland v England
Saturday 10 June, 17:00
Live on ITV 1 and Sky Sports 1
Saturday 10 June, 17:00
Live on ITV 1 and Sky Sports 1
Scotland
Scotland manager Gordon Strachan finds himself under pressure going into this game and, should his side be on the end of a big reversal against their old foes south of the border, it could well spell curtains for his four-and-a-half-year reign.
In truth, Strachan's Scotland still have every chance of qualifying for next year's World Cup. They sit two points from second place in the group which would give them a playoff spot, having already played away against the two best sides in the group - England and Slovakia. With teams like Northern Ireland and Wales both recently qualifying for major tournaments, Scottish fans are entitled to ask why it couldn't be their country also sharing in that success.
The Tartan Army had to witness a 3-0 defeat in the first fixture between these two sides in the group, but it was probably a harsh scoreline on the Scots who were a touch naive and perhaps let the occasion of playing at Wembley get to them. Fans will be hoping that lesson has been learned on Saturday night.
England
Whisper it, but Gareth Southgate's start to life as England manager has been quietly impressive so far, particularly for a man who didn't really want the job in the first place.
First of all, he handled the ridiculously over the top, media-led, question of who would be made captain adroitly. After that he has overseen a number of positive results and successfully navigated the thorny Wayne Rooney issue with dexterity.
England are of course in pole position in this group and should qualify for next year's festivities with ease. Southgate knows he will be judged on how his team perform in the tournament proper - but the Three Lions are coming at that from such a low starting point it would be hard to imagine how he can possibly do worse than his predecessor.
Match Odds
England are big odds-on favourites for this one, at 1.74. They're clearly the better side here and should, by rights, win fairly easily. There is a certain amount of jeopardy involved in playing a local rival, but in this instance I don't see Scotland being in decent enough form to trouble England unduly, and I'm certainly not interested in backing them even at a price of 6.20. I think they're a busted flush under Strachan and probably need a new manager to spark them again.
The Draw is available at 3.65.
Over/Under 2.5 Goals
The market here is quite interesting. Over 2.5 Goals seems to have settled at around 2.38 and that's an attractive price for me. I suppose the market expects Scotland to try and keep it tight - yet they've conceded eight goals in five games already and England are the best team in the group. I find it fanciful the idea that the Scots can achieve that aim. England are of course yet to concede a goal in the group, so that's where the jeopardy comes in.
Overall though I'll happily take an interest in Overs at the price.
Unders is currently 1.69.
Correct Score
Betfair Sportsbook is currently running an offer of 15/2 on a 0-2 correct score in England's favour, and if you do think that Scotland can limit England to an extent, it might well be worth a look.
The value play is probably backing Overs, as I've said, but if you told me you think it could end 0-2 in England's favour, I couldn't reasonably argue with you.
Recommended Bet
Back Over 2.5 Goals at 2.38
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