Scotland’s quest to reach next summer’s World Cup continues on Monday night when they take on Belarus.
The match is being played behind closed doors in the Hungarian town of Zalaegerszeg at the ZTE Arena. UEFA have ordered all of the Belarussians’ home matches to be played on neutral territory with no fans due to their involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
It will ensure an eerie atmosphere when Steve Clarke’s Scotland side take to the field in a match they know they must win to maintain their hopes of finishing top of Group C.
The campaign started on Friday night when Scotland ground out a valuable point against top seeds Denmark at Parken Stadion in Copenhagen.
Clarke must now decide who to pick for what is - on paper - a much more winnable match against a team that was routed 5-1 by Greece on Friday.
Our chief football writer Alan Pattullo, who is inZalaegerszeg ahead of the game, puts together his team:
1. Angus Gunn
One of the star men on Friday v Denmark, Gunn made a mockery of being potentially relegated to third choice at Nottingham Forest following their decision to bring in Brazilian goalkeeper John Victor from Botafogo last week. He looked assured and ought to continue this odd existence where he’s playing more internationals than club games. | PA
2. Aaron Hickey
Steve Clarke made a point of saying that the right back, who is just back from serious injury, needs to be treated with caution. Playing two games in a row might be challenging but this is a World Cup qualifying fixture, the second of only six. Give him the first hour at least and then switch with Max Johnston, whose international pedigree is still in development. | Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Ima
3. John Souttar
As one of the men responsible for dealing with the 48 crosses flung into the Scottish box by Denmark on Friday, it’s reasonable to say the defender enjoyed a successful night given his side did not concede. It was not a relentless bombardment but he was busy enough and means he has been involved in two clean sheets in the form of successive 0-0s for club and country. | SNS Group
4. Grant Hanley
Souttar’s partner in the middle did what he does best against the Danes – he stood his ground, made some important blocks, won the majority of his aerial challenges and managed to allay concerns about his lack of recent game time. Although Scott McKenna is an option, centre half might be an area where it’s wise to say to those already in possession of the jerseys: go again. | PA