Scotland v Israel

Scotland and Israel meet tonight for the fifth time in a
year, in a third different competition and, after two
closed-doors encounters at Hampden Park, in front of
the first full house at the national stadium since 2019.
After having little interaction
for the best part of a century,
the two countries have
become keen rivals in recent
years and results confirm
that they are very closely
matched.
On 4 September last year,
both sides fought out a
1-1 draw in their 2020-
21 Nations League game
at Hampden Park, where
Ryan Christie’s penalty was
cancelled out by an Eran
Zahavi strike.
At the same venue the
following month, Israel
become the first side to play
Scotland in back-to-back
internationals in Mount
Florida.
In front of an empty stadium
again as Covid-19 restrictions
continued, the 2020
European Championship
play-off semi-final resulted
in a goalless draw after
120 tense minutes, with the
Scots winning their first-ever
penalty shoot-out to make it
to the final against Serbia.
The teams met for a third
successive month when
Scotland lost 1-0 in Netanya
on the back of a play-off
final win against Serbia and
narrow defeat by Slovakia.
The result saw Scotland drop
off top spot in their Nations
League group and miss out
on promotion to League A.
The teams met for a fourth
successive international
fixture window on 28 March
this year, drawing 1-1 in Tel
Aviv in a World Cup qualifier.
Tonight’s return game at
Hampden promises another
tight encounter in front of
a huge crowd who know
a Scotland win will be a
massive boost to the quest to
qualify for Qatar next year.
The feel-good factor in the
country is high following the
hard-fought 1-0 win over
Austria in Vienna last month.
However, the Tartan Army
were at a low ebb after the
1-1 draw in Israel which,
following a 2-2 draw at home
to the Austrians, meant four
points were lost in the first
two qualifying games.
Scotland started slowly in Tel
Aviv and the home side took
a deserved 44th-minute lead
when keeper David Marshall
palmed Dor Peretz’s longrange
shot into the net.
Steve Clarke changed
formation at half-time by
bringing on Christie for
defender Jack Hendry and
Scotland levelled 11 minutes
into the second half through
Ryan Fraser. There was to be
no winner for the Scots but
Clarke remained optimistic.
He said: “I can’t look into the
future, I can’t tell if it’s two
good points or whether we
have dropped four points and
it’s going to be costly. It’s very
difficult to tell.
“Everyone talks about Israel
being fourth seeds but Israel
are a good team and they
have proven that against
Scotland over the recent run
of games. We have played a
lot against them and there is
never anything in the game.
“We are unbeaten, I don’t
know if two points is good
or bad. You are asking me
to predict the future and I’m
afraid I can’t do that.”
Ahead of the following game
against the Faroe Islands,
Clarke added: “Every game
at international level now is
difficult. Spain scored in the
93rd minute to beat Georgia,
Malta drew at Slovakia,
Luxembourg beat the
Republic of Ireland.
“We have to respect the
opposition and if we get
three points by the end of the
week, Austria play Denmark
so one of them or both are
going to drop points. So let’s
see what happens.’’
Scotland recovered in the
group and after six fixtures
HAMPDEN PARK / SATURDAY, 9 OCTOBER 2021
SCOTLAND v ISRAEL / 31