Scotland 1-1 Switzerland: Clarke's men keep Group A hopes alive

Scott McTominay and Xherdan Shaqiri swapped first-half goals as Scotland and Switzerland played out an entertaining 1-1 draw in their second UEFA EURO 2024 match.

Match in brief: Scotland battle hard to keep dream alive

Andy Robertson takes on Silvan Widmer in CologneAFP via Getty Images

Although just the sides' second match of the tournament, this Group A encounter had the feeling a knockout game, not least because of Scotland's position in the group and their fans' intense backing from the off.

With huge roars greeting every won throw-in and 50-50 tackle, the players responded and were soon in the lead. Andy Robertson broke clear down the left and fed Callum McGregor, whose cut-back was struck goalwards by McTominay. Yann Sommer looked certain to collect but Fabian Schär stuck out a leg and diverted the ball into the top corner.

The Tartan Army were sent into raptures but the joy did not last long as Switzerland were level by the 26th minute. Making his first appearance of the tournament, Shaqiri was occupying a central role and when Anthony Ralston slipped a loose pass inside, he latched onto it, bending a brilliant first-time effort past Angus Gunn.

The Scotland goalkeeper then had to be sharp to deny Dan Ndoye as the game's pace refused to settle down. Steve Clarke's men suffered a blow on the hour as Kieran Tierney was forced off with a hamstring injury trying to stop Ndoye, who could only shoot wide. Grant Hanley then headed a Robertson free-kick against the post as the game remained in the balance.

McTominay had a volley blocked while Ndoye continued to look dangerous, now down the left with Breel Embolo having entered the fray. Another Swiss substitute, Zeki Amdouni headed just wide as the game slipped into added time but it was Scotland pressing at the end. Although they were unable to give their fans the second goal they craved, they have at least kept their EURO dream alive, while Switzerland move onto four points behind already-qualified Germany in Group A.

Vivo Player of the Match: Manuel Akanji (Switzerland)

"Dominant in the air, organised the back three well, composed on the ball, excellent in the build-up and four line-breaking passes."
UEFA Technical Observer panel

Alex O'Henley, Scotland reporter

This was played like a knockout tie but a point apiece feels like a fair result after a pulsating game in Cologne. Scotland thought they had won it when Hanley's header crashed back off the post, and again when McTominay threatened to score his second of the evening. It's a big point for Scotland, though, as it maintains their hopes of progressing to the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time.

Anna-Sophia Vollmerhausen, Switzerland reporter

Faced with a Scotland side with their backs up against the wall, the Swiss at times looked frantic and unsettled. They knew it would be an intense, tough game, and have Shaqiri to thank for ensuring that they return with a point. Tournament football doesn't leave much time to dwell on the result, however, as the focus will now shift almost immediately to their all-important final group game against hosts Germany.

Reaction

Steve Clarke, Scotland head coach: "That's what we expected [from the team]. This is the way we've been playing for the last three or four years. We knew what we had to do. It was a good team performance against good opponents and a good reaction to a disappointing night [against Germany]. We're still alive."

Andy Robertson, Scotland captain: "We were a lot more happy with that performance. We'll take the draw; we've taken it into the last game and that's all we can ask. We need to go again on Sunday because that's a massive game for us now. We can take a lot of positives from tonight but we can also tweak little things and improve even more, which is a good thing."

Billy Gilmour, Scotland midfielder: "Everyone on the pitch in a Scotland jersey gave everything tonight. The attitude was right from the start, and it was a true reflection of what this team is all about. It puts us in a good place for the next game. We believe we can go and do it now in the last match. We've got a good enough group of players in there to go and make history."

Murat Yakin, Switzerland coach: "I spoke before with the team that we would expect pressure, that they'd shut down the space in the middle of the park. We could have won the match but they also created opportunities. Shaqiri proved tonight that he lives and breathes for moments such as these. It was an unbelievably clinical strike and it was the only thing he could do in that situation."

Xherdan Shaqiri, Switzerland midfielder: "I will always remember this goal. The ball was so slow coming to me and I thought: 'OK, I need to try to take it first time', and hit it really perfectly into the corner. It was a really beautiful goal but I've scored many beautiful goals before. It gave us a lot of strength. You saw that we created more chances afterwards but didn't score. We were the better team and had the better chances."

Granit Xhaka, Switzerland captain: "It was a confident performance we can build on. Scotland used a lot of man-to-man marking. We should have created more chances. We saw today why Shaqiri is so important. Not many people have a left foot like that."

Key stats

Scott McTominay after giving Scotland an early leadAFP via Getty Images

• Shaqiri is the only European player to have scored in each of the last six EURO and World Cup tournaments.
• It is the first time Scotland have gained at least a point in a EURO game in which they've conceded, having lost their previous six such matches when shipping a goal.
• John McGinn has appeared in Scotland's last 31 games in all competitions, the longest run since Tom Boyd played 38 consecutive matches from August 1995 to June 1999.
• Switzerland named their oldest ever EURO starting XI (30 years 119 days).
• This is the first time since scoring three in 1992 that Scotland have found the net more than once at EURO.
• Shaqiri has now appeared in seven EURO and World Cup tournaments, a Switzerland record.
• Switzerland have lost just one of their last 12 EURO matches (W4, D7).

Line-ups

Scotland: Gunn; Ralston, Hendry, Hanley, Tierney (McKenna 61), Robertson; McTominay, Gilmour (McLean 79), McGregor, McGinn (Christie 90); Adams (Shankland 90)

Switzerland: Sommer; Schär, Akanji, Rodríguez; Widmer (Stergiou 86), Xhaka, Freuler (Sierro 75), Aebischer; Ndoye (Amdouni 86), Shaqiri (Embolo 60), Vargas (Rieder 75)