2024 EURO Qualifiers: Norway vs. Scotland Preview, Betting Tips, Prediction, Picks

Norway and Scotland meet in Round 3 of the 2024 EURO qualifiers on Saturday night in Oslo. Ullevall Stadium is the venue where Haaland and the crew take on the Tartan Army. The hosts are under the imperative to win this battle because they have just one point in two appearances. So, Norway is facing a huge problem if they don’t triumph against Scotland, who has been excellent with six points after two rounds. They even beat Spain at home, boosting the morale ahead of other challenges. 

Preview

Norway (-105) had back-to-back road trips in their EURO qualifiers’ opening. Stale Solbakken’s crew would take only one point from those contests, losing to Spain 3-0 and playing 1-1 in Tbilisi against Georgia.

Sorloth scored for the guests after 15 minutes, pushing his team to the lead. Norway was superb in the opening 45 minutes but severely lost its pace in the second half, allowing Georgia to equalize and even threaten to score once more. Yes, they, too, could win, but walking on a razor blade in these situations can easily end up disastrous.

Norway has Haaland and Odegaard, who stand out above all the other players when talking about quality. Yet other players aren’t anywhere near, and we particularly mean about defense, who struggles to keep a clean sheet against teams who are ranked way lower than the Norwegian unit. 

Scotland (+280) had a more or less solid record in the UEFA Nations League but failed to reach the World Cup previously following a loss to Ukraine in the playoffs. That’s why the Tartan Army decided to give all of its power during the EURO qualifiers and reach at least this international tournament.

The Scottish defense has been excellent over the opening two group games. After restraining Cyprus, 3-0, they kept a clean sheet against Spain as well, 2-0. Scott McTominay was the hero in that one, netting twice, once in the seventh and the other time in the 51st minute. 

Spain had twice as much time with the ball in its feet, but a very physical and hard block in front of the Scottish goal managed to push back all the attacks and stay consistent until the end of the event. 

Latest News

The hosts should have all of their players involved and ready.

Meanwhile, Scotland won’t have Anthony Ralston, as well as Craig Gordon, Che Adams and Grant Hanley. 

EURO 2024 Qualifiers: Belgium vs. Austria Preview, Betting Tips, Prediction, Picks

Head to Head 

Norway and Scotland didn’t meet in a long time, with the last encounter occurring 10 years ago. Back then, Scotland was better in a friendly international, 0-1. 

Previously, they met four times in the World Cup qualifiers (2006 and 2010), with Norway winning twice, Scotland once, and with one tie. 

Prediction

From what we saw in previous events, Scotland will defend itself with all of its power, especially now, where they lack several important players. Preserving their own net will be the top assignment, and only then look at the rival’s goal. Norway has nothing to wait for, and they must be aggressive right from the kick-off. The home field, the fact that Scotland isn’t persuasive on the road, and Haaland upfront are enough reasons to pick the hosts to triumph here.

Pick: Norway wins -105