Czech mate! Scots’ defeat raises stakes at Wembley
SCOTLAND kicked off their Euros campaign with an agonising defeat against the Czech Republic and must now beat the auld enemy if they are to have a chance of progressing.
A huge television audience is expected to tune in for Friday’s Home Nations showdown with England at Wembley.
But it was made all the more crucial for Scotland after they lost their first game in a major tournament for 23 years in front of a reduced capacity of 12,000 Tartan Army fans at Hampden Park in Glasgow.
The Czechs took the lead through Patrik Schick on 42 minutes and although Scotland hit the bar, they were killed off by Schick’s second, a wonder strike from near the halfway line.
After the game, former Scottish international Darren Fletcher said: “I’m not ruling us out against England.”
There had been huge anticipation north of the border for Scotland’s return to the footballing big stage. Scottish fans sank an estimated 360,000 pints during yesterday’s opening match, a trades body said.
But the Scottish Beer and Pub Association (SBPA) said it believed almost 90,000 more pints would have been pulled if the game against the Czech Republic had been shown without coronavirus restrictions. Overall, the trade association estimated that 800,000 pints were sold in Scotland throughout yesterday.
Emma McClarkin, SBPA chief executive, added: “Nothing beats watching the football at the pub.
“Unfortunately, the current restrictions on pubs do mean the experience isn’t going to be the same.
“No standing and limits on group sizes, as well as social distancing, are going to severely reduce the number of people who can enjoy the game in the pub.
“More and more people are getting the vaccine each day.
“It’s time for the restrictions on our freedoms to be replaced by the protection of the vaccination and for life to get back to normal.
“The countdown to freedom is on.”
England’s perfect start to their Euro 2020 campaign on Sunday – a 1-0 win over Croatia – pulled in a peak television audience of 11.6 million and a 79.2 per cent share of viewers.
It also set a new BBC iPlayer liveviewing record with the game being streamed 3.9 million times.
The focus now turns to Friday. England against Scotland is regarded as the oldest international footballing rivalry in the world.
The first meeting between the two teams took place in 1872, in what football’s governing body FIFA has recognised as the first international match in history.
A modest 4,000 people were in attendance in Glasgow that day to witness the goalless draw.
● England v Scotland is on ITV at 8pm on Friday.