Scotland host the Faroe Islands on Wednesday evening in their third World Cup 2022 qualifier, as they bid to record their first victory in Group F.
Both sides have failed to win any of their last four international matches but a victory at Hampden Park for either team could potentially see them finish the international break inside the top two.
Match preview
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Scotland extended their unbeaten run in World Cup qualifiers to eight matches as they claimed a point against Israel with a 1-1 draw in Tel Aviv on Sunday.
The hosts took the lead when a brilliant 25-yard strike from midfielder Dor Peretz beat goalkeeper David Marshall on the stroke of half time.
However, Ryan Fraser's low-driven shot in the 56th minute squeezed past Hibernian stopper Ofir Marciano to help the Scots claim their second point in Group F.
Manager Steve Clarke believes that it is too early to say whether they are already struggling in their World Cup group but is hopeful that three points can be secured on Wednesday, which could move them into the top two if Austria were to lose against group leaders Denmark.
Scotland have never lost against the Faroe Islands in nine previous meetings, winning their last four encounters by an aggregate score of 14-1.
With their next qualifier against Denmark in September, a victory in midweek would put the Scots in a strong position, providing a much-needed boost in their quest to qualify for their first World Cup since 1998.
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A run of seven games without defeat came to an end for the Faroe Islands last Sunday, when they were beaten 3-1 away to Austria.
Hakan Ericson's side took an early lead through Sonni Nattestad, however three goals in 14 minutes from Aleksandar Dragovic, Christoph Baumgartner and Sasa Kalajdzic gave the Austrians a two-goal lead heading into half time, a cushion they were able to hold on to.
After a successful UEFA Nations League campaign in 2020, which saw the Faroe Islands top League D Group 1, their match against Austria was their first real test against a stronger nation in over a year and one that Ericson and his players will have learned from.
Their next encounter against Scotland will also be a tougher task, having lost all five of their previous visits to Hampden Park, but they will still hope to cause problems and earn at least a point as they bid to reach a major tournament for the first time in their history.
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Team News
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Even though Scotland boss Clarke may be tempted to start with a four-man defence on Wednesday, continuing with a back-three is more likely if he is to accommodate both Andrew Robertson and Kieran Tierney in his first XI.
Attacking midfield trio Ryan Christie, Stuart Armstrong and Ryan Fraser have all started one of the last two matches, but if Clarke wishes to play with two strikers, then only one of these three are likely to start, with Christie set to get the nod.
Southampton's Che Adams will be hoping to start and score his first Scotland goal and could be partnered up front with Queens Park Rangers forward Lyndon Dykes or Hibernian's Kevin Nisbet, who could be handed his international debut.
For the Faroe Islands, centre-back Heini Vatnsdal is set to keep his place in the starting lineup ahead of Odmar Faero, who sustained an injury against Moldova.
Forward Klaemint Olsen was dropped to the bench against Austria but could be recalled to the first XI at the expense of either Meinhard Olsen or Joan Simun Edmundsson.
Scotland possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Hendry, Hanley, Tierney; O'Donnell, McTominay, McGinn, Robertson; Christie; Adams, Dykes
Faroe Islands possible starting lineup:
Nielsen; Rolantsson, Vatnsdal, Nattestad, Davidsen; S.Vatnhamar, Hansson, G.Vatnhamar, B. Olsen; K. Olsen; Edmundsson
We say: Scotland 2-1 Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands will fancy their chances of finding the net on Wednesday, having scored in nine of their last 10 international matches, while Scotland have conceded in each of their last five games.
Steve Clarke's men will still be the favourites heading into this clash and we expect them to secure a narrow victory at Hampden Park.
Top tip
Oliver Thomas
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Scotland win with a probability of 60.25%. A draw had a probability of 25.8% and a win for Faroe Islands had a probability of 13.99%.
The most likely scoreline for a Scotland win was 1-0 with a probability of 18.74%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (14.18%) and 2-1 (8.16%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 0-0 (12.39%), while for a Faroe Islands win it was 0-1 (7.13%). The actual scoreline of 4-0 was predicted with a 2.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Scotland would win this match.
