andychar

Euro 2024 Last 16 Austria (n) 3rd time we have played Austria and we are 100% against them. But this is how close it is. We are forced into one change. 2 yellows in the Group means Andy Robertson watches this from the stands. Harsh but thems the breaks. I would like an early goal here, calm the nerves. Cheers Che. Good lad. Che Adams makes it 2 and we are in dreamland right now! Ryan Fraser has had a brilliant Tournament in my opinion and he smashes home a 3rd. What a half of football. Absolutely clinical. Tierney yellow means he will miss the Quarters (if we get there). That's a sickener. Job very much done in the first half. What a brilliant performance.

Group D finished interestingly. Ukraine out of nowhere qualify for the Second Round, its another team I think we could beat. Holland are shockingly out. Czech Republic face a wait. Germany are now confirmed to be through to the knockouts. As are Serbia from our Group. No surprises in Group E really. I don't think Israel are going through with a -7 GD. Norway are looking a force to be reckoned with. The teams are set. Bosnia and Herzegovina are through along with Czech Republic. Some beatable teams but I'm not entirely sure how the draw will work so..... We meet again! We will have played 2 teams we qualified with. Its a very kind draw and we can beat these, we have done it twice before. Belgium should beat Poland. Germany v Portugal is a tasty game. Italy should be through. I would like the winner of Ukraine and Switzerland in the Quarters please! Norway and France should get through and then the bottom game is spicy as well. Some jobs will be lost after this...not mine though

Euro 2024 Italy (n) Italy are through. Hungary and Sweden don't do themselves any favours by drawing. Day 8 saw Holland get a much needed win although they left it late. Nobody has officially qualified from Group D but Spain with 6 points are pretty much certain. France 6 from 6, some strong teams showing good form. Group F provided fun for the whole family. Outstanding effort. Israel bounced back well from a thrashing to give them a chance of the Last 16. Group A came to a head. Slovenia are unlucky to find themselves bottom of the group with 3 points when some teams will get through with the same amount. Austria and Poland through but it will be surprising if Germany don't get through with 4 points finishing 3rd in the Group. They will be a danger in the knockouts. We are just as likely to draw than we are to win here! It will be our 3rd attempt at Italy. We have lost both home and away, so lets beat them in Germany eh. No surprises at all in Group B. Sweden and Hungary will be going home. Two strong teams from this Group. Unlike Group A where I think if we turned up we could beat both teams confirmed to be through. So we go into our game against Italy knowing we could finish 1st, 2nd or 3rd in this Group still. 3rd game in a row with the same XI. I was hoping Italy was going to go easy on us, fat chance! We held out for as long as we could but its been one way traffic. Immobile scored as he always does against us. The lead lasted less than 2 minutes as Ryan Fraser continues his fine tournament. Its the first time we have ventured forward. Game on! The game became very subdued after the flurry of goals. No complaints at the moment! Could we sneak a win and tick off a huge Country off the list? Oh my! A free kick in a dangerous position on the wing is fired in and it causes absolute confusion. The ball ends up in the back of the net thanks to an Italy defender. VAR checks the goal and its given. 20 minutes plus stoppage time to hold on for a famous victory. Heartbreak! A silly foul to give away and its that man Immobile again, this time from the penalty spot. We were this close! Man this save really knows who to sock a guy in the gut! I feel like we always give Italy a good game but we just can't beat them! Happy with the effort shown. Serbia give themselves a chance of qualifying with a hammering of Denmark who will go home. We are through! What a performance its been this Tournament. Only 1 Country ticked off the list but I'll take it right now.

That it is! Even better to follow it up with a solid point!

Euro 2024 Denmark (n) Obviously we have Italy last, we could be already through before we even play them. A point here and surely it will be enough either way. Not great for the save though! We want to win! Some big games in Day 4. Wales getting smashed but not as much as Israel. They will be delighted to get that out the way. Maybe a shock in the Holland game. Day 5 produced no shocks other than the fact Ireland got destroyed. All these teams getting battered is good for me and their negative GD. It could come into play for those 3rd place qualifiers. These odds look very similar to the Serbia game. We won that, it was a tight game but we won. Can we do the same here? Day 6 and its the start of the second set of games. Austria make it 2 from 2 and qualify for the Second Round. Portugal also do the same and although not officially through yet they will be. Poland will take on Germany in the last game of Group A with qualification on the line while Slovenia know a win against Austria at least gives them a chance. We are Day 7! No changes from the win against Serbia. Not happy with the ref 1) He's English and 2) He's Anthony Taylor. It had been coming. I was hoping we could hold on until half time but a free kick on the wing is headed home by Braithwaite. Honestly if he was better he could have had a hat trick in this first half. Kelly with some good saves. We are still in this, a draw is as good as a win in this format. We haven't created much apart from the odd long shot. Need to be better to beat Kasper. Get in! We actually scored a few minutes before the screenshot but it went to VAR and I was sure it would be chalked off for offside. It wasn't and Che Adams fires us level very early in the second half. I complained about the lack of creativity. Instant response! Che Adams misses a 1 on 1 to put us ahead and then they go straight down a score, a goal out of nothing for them as we have been the better side. Its a bitter blow. RYAN FRASER! Cross comes in and its over Che Adams head but he does well to chase it down and keep it alive, he finds Fraser in the box who smashes it home! The travelling Tartan Army go wild! The last act of the game is a Red Card and Denmark are down to 10 and his tournament could be over. That will almost be certain to be enough for us to get to the knockouts. We aren't taking home the win and a ticking off of a Nation, in fact its our only draw this entire save but we are happy.

Euro 2024 Serbia (n) We start our charge with maybe the easiest game on paper. A win here will take the pressure off the rest of the Tournament. A shock to start as the Hosts fall to a last second penalty. Nice to see Austria get there still after we beat them, they must have got there via the Playoffs. This is going to be close. So very close. No real surprises in Day 2. We are Day 3. The nerves are building. Its nice to have no pressure from the FA either way. Out strongest XI. Lets go! John McGinn puts Che Adams through who scores his biggest goal on the International Stage. Boom! Its been a tricky half. We got the early goal but spent a lot of it under the cosh. Big second half ahead. Now that's the best win of the save so far. Fantastic effort. Both teams gave it their all. Fantastic win! Well I mean it wasn't a spectacular day but it will do!

Friendly Bolivia (h) On paper its probably the trickest friendly we have had so far. It would be the First South American team off the list as well. Some changes. Decided to rest some of the bigger names. Might backfire today. That was painful to watch! A nice early second half penalty. McGregor been on nearly 3 minutes and scores. Lovely stuff. Che Adams puts the game to bed. The win masks the fact we had 5 shots on target from 29 attempts. Pain. 3 wins from 3 in the Friendlies. Time to get down to the serious stuff!

Friendly Congo (h) No time to rest straight into the second friendly before the Euros. Couple of changes. Adams comes in for Brown. Armstrong comes in for Gauld and Kelly will start the rest of the games in goal. Sigh. Lead didn't last long. Lucky for us! Lots of bookings. They scored out of nothing really. Should still be on for a win. Don't want to rely on a freekick though! We we didn't have to wait as long as last time but still not been comfortable! Turnbull came on and fired us into the lead. Job done. Its not been a good performance but its going to be a win. It'll do. Its another win. Another Country off the list. We move on.

Friendly Benin (h) The first game of this International Break. We have 6, I want more though! Some big names on the bench. Erm. That wasn't in the script! Armstrong fires us level. A draw does us no good we need to win! They cut us open like a knife through butter, a really good goal. Ryan Gauld scores on his debut. Lovely move down the left and its slotted home into a near open net. Ok no more silly buggers! Sorry forgot a post a half time stats image. Turnbull with a thunderbolt free kick has potentially bailed us out! Brown with a carbon copy of the 2nd goal and its a little bit of icing on this cake. We deserved the win. Didn't think it was going to happen but its another Country ticked off. The first African Country.

Annoyingly I had to cut this squad to 23 before I even played a game. Liam Kelly will get the nod here but Murray Johnson I think will be the starter after this tournament. I don't think there are many surprises here. My starting XI will consist of Robertson LB McTominay and Tierney CB and Patterson RB. Both Gauld and Erhahon are the only players who could win their first cap. Starting XI for the Finals will be up in the air. I didn't see the point on wasting a space on a position where only 1 will play. No injuries please. I've gambled.

Chuffing el its all go! Well we have proven we can beat Austria and the other two are winnable ties. I'm happy with this draw! The only surviving friendly from this list was the 2 I've already played and Iraq.

Portugal, Holland and Ukraine...got it... It does mean 2 friendlies have been cancelled but in place of those 2 friendlies we now have 6 fresh opportunities to tick off some teams.

How the hell are England not on that list? Good to see the Scottish fans are as butt hurt as I am after that Sweden defeat though. Nothing of this makes any sense? 65th Euros? Surely not? ROY KEANE?! Surely not! Some tasty group games. Group D started out one I would have liked, quickly glad it was avoided. Serbia and Denmark are two games if we turn up we can win. I would be disappointed if we don't at least finish 3rd here and give ourselves at least a chance of qualifying. Italy once again. We gave them a good game in Italy. Now maybe 3rd time lucky? Early rivals have been detected! We technically are the weakest team in the Group with our World Ranking. No pressure at all here which is good. It won't end up with me losing my job!

Friendly Haiti (h) Ryan Jack is injured so I've called up somebody I think will make somebody very happy Nobody complained about 46 minutes instead of 45 so happy days! On paper its the harder of the 2 so Lord knows why I went my Second XI. Dembele to Adams and we have had worse starts. A lovely well worked goal and its Adams again. Nothing spectacular but a nice half time lead. Must remember to make subs! Billy Gilmour has the easiest job in the World of tapping into an empty net after Robertson good work down the wing and a nice ball into the box. I have no idea what happend, I was making subs. We scored...woooooo! I like the idea that McTominay took his shirt off in celebration of assiting the 4th goal. Its a guess but I'm sticking to it. 2 Countries ticked off the list! We are on our way. Its 7 down...so so so many more to go. 77 days until our next break and 2 more friendlies. Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Barthelemy await!

Friendly Bermuda (h) Lets get this over with! Ok that took longer than I thought it would but I'll take it! Armstrong with the goal. Che Adams makes it 2. A nice easy goal. Should be a cake walk from here. John McGinn makes it 3. Easy game this. I feel this isn't a fair contest. Oh shoot. I've just realised I didn't make the subs from the teams who wanted me to play 45 minutes....whoops! They played 46 minutes. Dembele makes it 4. Excuse me what?! That'll do pig.

Dunno why we had to change a game but hey, Haiti are in the Top 100. A scalp? What fresh hell is this? Murray Johnson looks like he could be an amazing keeper. Liam Kelly would be the start when I've gotta give this 19 year old his first cap! No real surprises. I want to win these games. Dembele keeps finding himself in my squads and at this point I'm too afraid to ask why. The traditional 3.

Cheers mate. We keep the job thats the main thing! I've been busy. Now I don't know how many of these are going to be kept but 8 Countries there. 2 you could say are tricky, Iran and New Zealand. The rest are fodder to get this save ticking along.

127 days until we play Berumda and Guatemala. The Golden Duo as they are often described as.

Cheers mate. I know what you mean, I haven't done any International Management in ages but thought I'd get my teeth stuck into this one and I've really enjoyed it so far.

Euro 2024 Qualifiers Austria (h) We are favourites. We also know with Romania not qualifying we can't get a playoff place. Meaning this is it. Now or never. This is our playoff final. The job needed is simple. Win or draw. A loss would see us out. Its going to be horrible and nervy. Its going to be Scottish International Football in a nutshell. I've made a somewhat controversial decision to swap out Gunn in goal for Kelly. Other than that maybe the only surprise is Tierney and McTominay at CB while Turnbull keeps his place in AMC. This is it. I'm going to hate this. The start dreams are made of! And what a finish it was from Armstrong, he's slowly become the first name on the teamsheet and he has delivered. 80 minutes to go. A draw is enough. We are in the drivers seat. Che Adams plays a lovely ball into Ryan Fraser and he slots home. There's a party atmosphere at Hampden. Its half time here and Flower of Scotland is ringing out. Not on the screenshot are 3 more bookings! 2 for us 1 for them. Its been a fiesty affair and if it finishes 11 v 11 I'll be amazed! 20 minutes to go and Austria have a lifeline. A long ball pumped forward finds the striker who fires home well. Game on? Still 11 v 11. ARMSTRONG!!! All the nerves that were building disappear in one huge roar from Hampden. Surely, surely now our ticket has been punched! Who ordered icing on that cake? Fraser gets his second. His goals toward the end of this group have been so valuable. Oh Flower of Scotland! Adams gets in on the act. Has this been one of the all time great Scottish Performances? Luckily we aren't playing last goal winner. If it wasn't injury time I'd start to get worried. We were clinical when we needed to be. 2 sets of bursts of fire was enough. What a game of football. Far from the cagey affair I thought we were going to have. God that feels good.

Euro 2024 Qualifiers Moldova (a) Unsurprisingly we are favourites. No matter what happens here we go into the final game with it all in our own hands. Regardless a win here makes it all that easier. 6 players confused with the team sheet.... Its probably our weakest XI. Gamble? 10 minutes on the clock and all fears of a gamble are put to rest. Dembele gets his first goal for Scotland. Brown pounces first after a save to knock it into an empty net. My decisions have been justified. 25th minute and Moldova are down to 10 men. Its not been a great day for them. We should coast home from here. This game is flat. It has an air of "job done" about it. Lets just get to 90 and move on. We huffed and puffed in second half. Would have liked more goals but it meant less work for me cutting out the images. Austria waited until the 90th minute to get a winner against Luxembourg but it wouldn't have changed things either way. We now know what we need to do in the last game.

Ryan Christie is a loss but it could have been worse I suppose. Glad to welcome back Tierney, the Swiss Army Knife at the back. Other than that no real surprises. Gunn will get both games, no point chopping and changing the keepers for the sake of it. Don't know why Gunn has been my Number 1 ahead of Kelly. Moldova away so I'm not going for Strongest XI hence why Robertson and Tierney are on the bench. McTominay continues to get picked despite hardly playing for United. He need to move ASAP! Che Adams will be rested but will feature against Austria. Feels like we are setting ourselves up for a fall against Moldova but surely we have enough about us to get passed that game and onto the 1 game shootout against Austria at Hampden.

Euro 2024 Qualifiers Georgia (h) We are favourites but its not going to be straighforward on paper. The reverse fixture was the one that flattered us the most. We won by a heavy score but you could argue we were 2nd best throughout. I don't want to take this for granted. Several changes made. This wasn't in the script. A mistake by Cooper gifts the striker the ball in a 1 on 1 position and he finishes past an advancing Gunn. Boy did we need that. First half stoppage time and Ryan Fraser makes sure we go into the break level. Its been an International Break where we seemingly can't hit a barn door! Only got to hit it once more at least. 61st minute and Che Adams has fired us into the lead! But...hang on...no its being called back for offside. It was a wicked finish but it counts for nothing. Time is quickly running out. Get in! It was nervy but finally we break the dreadlock! Ryan Fraser pokes home after a bobble in the box. Huge goal. We were more than deserving of it. Its a night where we pick up 3 vital points and a night where Austria decided to show up in Italy and knock them for 5. So it means we are likely going to be going into the Final game at home to Austria needing just a point to advance. Italy rightfully looking nervously over their shoulder now but can't quite see them being to concerned.

Euro 2024 Qualifiers Luxembourg (h) We are favourites. We should win. Its not the strongest XI but it should get the job done! What a ball that is from Aaron Hickey, he finds Brown through on goal and its calmly dispatched. We have had a few chances so its nice to get an early goal. Billy Gilmour calmly slots home a penalty and we double our lead just before half time. Now I know it isn't GD I'm not massively fussed about goals. As long as we win. Steady as she goes. Nobody pay attention to the fact we had 26 shots and only managed 5 on target its not important. A win is a win. Keeps us ticking over! WHO TOLD THEM!

4 players who could be set to make their Scotland debut, including a new keeper oooooooo. I had to beg Siriki Dembele to join us. He could have picked England or Nigeria, I'm going to throw a cap on him so he's trapped forever. He's out for 2 weeks but not mentioned is poor Grant Hanley who is out for 4 months at least! Big blow. Sam Long is 20. He will get both these games and I hope he turns into the replacement for both Gunn and Kelly. Nice to see Keepers all under 30. With Tierney out Hickey comes back into the side. He will probably not be out the squad again to be honest because I'm sure Tierney can also play CB better than most here. No surprises here, nobody missing. Solid as a rock. I never noticed before that we only have 3 players 30 or over. Che Adams will play against Georgie but I want to make sure Dembele gets a chance this break. 6 from 6 isn't just the aim its the absolute bare minimum I expect from the next 2 games.