Preview: Denmark vs Scotland - prediction, team news, lineups

Denmark and Scotland kick off their World Cup qualifying campaigns with a tasty encounter at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen this Friday night.

The Danes are chasing their third successive World Cup appearance, while the Scots will be hoping to end their near 30-year wait for a spot at the tournament.

Match preview

Denmark have been a serious player on the international stage for a number of years. In fact, their only defeats since Euro 2024 have come against Spain and Portugal.

The Red and Whites have successfully qualified for five of the last seven World Cups and nine of the previous 11 European Championships.

Home form has been crucial to their success, with Brian Riemer’s side winning 11 of their last 12 such games. Their last home World Cup qualifying defeat came in October 2016 against Montenegro.

Denmark are very comfortable when it comes to putting numbers on the scoreboard, winning three of their last five World Cup qualifiers by a margin of two or more goals.

What is more, they have averaged a whopping 3.8 goals per match across their last five home World Cup qualifying fixtures.

Scotland will need to overcome Denmark’s impressive international record if they are to have any hope of ending their long wait for World Cup qualification.

The Scots last qualified for the tournament in 1998, but to their credit, they did come very close to securing a spot in the 2022 World Cup. After finishing second in their qualifying group, Steve Clarke’s men went into the playoffs, where they were ultimately beaten by Ukraine.

Scotland are improving on the international stage and have appeared in the previous two editions of the European Championships. While the Tartan Army failed to see their team win a single game across both tournaments, just qualifying marked a big success for the national side.

The Scots played against Denmark twice in their last World Cup qualifying campaign, with both nations getting a win each. Nevertheless, Clarke’s men will be feeling cautiously optimistic after winning their last three away games – including a couple of victories over Poland and Greece.

Denmark form (all competitions):

L DL W L W W

Scotland form (all competitions):

W W W L L W

Team News

Denmark will be strengthened by the return of experienced defender Andreas Christensen, who is looking to make his first appearance since Euro 2024.

Elsewhere, Mads Hermansen and William Osula are both hoping to make their senior debuts for the Red and Whites.

Kasper Dolberg, meanwhile, turned down a summer move to Celtic on deadline day. His previous eight goals for Denmark have all led to victories for the national side.

Che Adams will be looking to offer a serious goalscoring threat for Scotland; the Torino forward scored a hat-trick last time out as the Scots beat Liechtenstein 4-0.

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson will captain the Tartan Army, while Ballon d’Or nominee Scott McTominay will be looking to take his impressive club form onto the international stage.

Denmark possible starting lineup:

Schmeichel; Kristensen, Andersen, Vestergaard, Dorgu; Hojbjerg, Hjulmand; Dreyer, Dolberg, Damsgaard; Hojlund

Scotland possible starting lineup:

Gunn; Ralston, Souttar, McKenna, Robertson; Gilmour, McLean, Christie, McTominay, McGinn, Adams

We say: Denmark 1-1 Scotland

Denmark are a tough team to beat – especially on home soil – but Scotland will be looking to give it a good go after picking up some impressive results on the road in recent months.

While winning away in Copenhagen looks unlikely, there is no reason why Clarke’s men cannot come away with a solid point.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.