Clarke must drop 4/10 man after Finland display

Scotland will step into a baptism of fire this evening in Munich. The 2024 European Championships finally kick-off after what feels like months of buildup, as Germany hosts the event for the first time (West Germany were the hosts in 1988, three years before reunification).

Steve Clarke’s men will need to be at their best to have any chance of securing a positive result against the Germans. 2024 marks 26 years since Scotland opened the 1998 World Cup with a tie against holders Brazil.

Over a quarter of a century later, the Scots face a host nation who will be desperate to prove their worth.

Scotland’s preparation hasn’t exactly been smooth, with a mixture of injuries and poor results tempering expectations among the Tartan army.

How Scotland have prepared for the 2024 European Championship

The country faced two friendlies leading into the tournament, taking on Gibraltar in Portugal before heading back to Glasgow to welcome a Finnish side who failed to qualify in their final match before travelling to Germany.

A 2-0 win over the former may have been a victory, but it was hardly convincing. This was followed by a 2-2 draw over Finland, a game which saw Scotland stroll into a two-goal lead before being pegged back by two late goals.

These warm-up games were meant to give Clarke plenty of opportunity to give some fringe players a run out while also working out his strongest XI to play Germany.

Injuries to the likes of Nathan Patterson, Aaron Hickey and Lewis Ferguson in the final few weeks of the season were big blows, while Lyndon Dykes suffered an injury in training last week which ruled him out of the competition.

These setbacks leave a few gaps to be plugged in the squad, and it looked as though Lawrence Shankland took his chance well against the Finns, scoring a delightful header in the second half.

It was the defence that wasn’t at the races, however, something which will need to change if Clarke and his men aim to prevent Germany from running riot this evening.

Grant Hanley didn’t enjoy his finest game in a Scotland jersey. Might he be dropped for the opening fixture in Munich?

Grant Hanley’s game in numbers vs Finland

The experienced defender operated in the middle of a back three. Kieran Tierney was to his left, while Jack Hendry was to the right.

Hanley was on the pitch for 79 minutes, yet failed to really deliver a display which proved to Clarke that he should start against Germany.

Indeed, the 32-year-old lost possession four times, won just two of his five contested duels and was dribbled past on one occasion. He also failed to make a tackle or interception during his time on the pitch, along with delivering just one long pass.

Hanley did manage to take more touches than influential midfielder John McGinn during the match – 73 vs 63 – showing how comfortable he was on the ball, while his 94% pass success rate was impressive, yet Clarke may go for another option at the heart of his defence, especially to counteract the threat posed by the likes of Kai Havertz, Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala.

Hanley received a match rating of just 4/10 from Lewis Anderson of the Edinburgh News, stating that the defender delivered a ‘shaky performance’ before he was subbed with just ten minutes remaining.

The question is, who will Clarke bring in to replace the Norwich City centre-back tonight?

The players who can replace Grant Hanley vs Germany

The long-serving manager certainly has a few options that he could turn to who can replace Hanley and start alongside Tierney and Hendry against the Germans.

Scott McKenna was the player who replaced Hanley against Finland, playing around ten minutes at Hampden. He didn’t really get much time to showcase his credentials, however, taking only seven touches while completing just six passes before the full-time whistle.

The former Aberdeen gem spent the second half of the 2023/24 season on loan at FC Copenhagen, making a total of 13 appearances for the Danish outfit.

McKenna’s last four starts for Scotland have seen the nation concede 11 goals, drawing two and losing two of those four games, which may come into Clarke’s thinking.

Ryan Porteous is perhaps the main contender for a slot at the heart of the defence for their opening match this evening, especially with how well he has settled in at international level since making his debut against Ukraine in 2022, keeping a clean sheet in the process.

Since then, Porteous has played another ten games for the national team, keeping a clean sheet in half of those games, impressing under Clarke.

The former Hibs starlet was excellent for Watford last season in the Championship. Not only did he finish the season with a pass success rate of 84%, but the centre-back also averaged 65.4 touches per game, recovered 4.4 balls per game and won 4.9 total duels each match – a success rate of 59% – as he demonstrated his abilities in the second tier.

Scotland start as heavy underdogs against Germany but they will surely take solace that an upset to open a major international tournament happens every now and again.

Think back to Cameroon defeating world champions Argentina at Italia 90, or Senegal making France look like an ageing team who were on the way down at the 2002 World Cup.

The odds are certainly against the Scots, but if Clarke can unleash a solid starting XI in the Allianz Arena, then nothing can be ruled out, especially in the first match of a major competition.

Hanley shouldn’t be starting against the host nation, as the pace and creativity of several of their players could cause him plenty of problems.

At 32, he should be used as an option off the bench rather than being on the pitch for the first whistle. This suggests Clarke could well go for the likes of McKenna or Porteous to feature tonight, and there is no doubt either of them would be a better option than Hanley.