Why Scotland Fans Should Be Excited For 2019!

Date: 12th December 2018

As we head into the festive period, Scottish fans could be forgiven if they’re already getting excited about the new year. 

It’s going to be a big one for both our women’s team and their male counterparts. 

The Scottish Women have already reached their main goal of qualifying for the 2019 World Cup and it will be the first time Scotland will be represented in this particular tournament. 

Interest in the women’s game seems to be growing by the minute and I’m very hopeful that most of our nation will be cheering the ladies on when the tournament kicks off in France, next summer. 

The team did fantastically well to top their qualifying group ahead of Switzerland and Poland. 

Boss Shelley Kerr seems to have created a focused Scotland squad that are ready to step up a level and prove themselves. They’ve become one of Scotland’s biggest success stories! 

Attacking midfielder Kim Little is one of our nation’s best players. The Arsenal star was recently named the twenty-third best women’s player in the world, according to The Guardian. The twenty-eight year old is currently out with a broken leg but she should be back well before the Wolrd Cup kicks off in June. 

We’ve also got a terrific goalscorer in West Ham United’s Jane Ross, who has scored 57 times in 121 caps. 

The great thing when you look at Kerr’s recent squads, is that she has a mix of youth and veterans within her selection pool. You also have a good mix of players that ply their trade in Scotland and others that play in other countries like England, Sweden, Italy and Australia. 

The draw for their World Cup group should really excite the players.

They’ve got auld enemies in England, a team also on the up and who will fancy winning the competition. The desire to beat them should be incredibly high. 

They’ve also got a big test in Japan. The Japanese won the tournament back in 2011 and were runners-up last time out in Canada. 

Then you have Argentina, the groups lowest ranked team. They’re no where near as good as South American neighbours Brazil but they cannot be underestimated. 

Here’s hoping the team can keep their nerve and make us proud in France. 

The men’s side are also in a buoyant mood at the moment, and they too could be heading for a major tournament. 

Alex McLeish’s side secured top spot in the Nations League group and that means they now have a chance to qualify for Euro 2020 via the play-offs. 

They might not need to do that, as they also have a chance of securing qualification during the actual qualifying group. 

They’ve been drawn in the same group as Belgium, Russia, Cyprus, Kazakhstan and San Marino. 

Now Belgium showed with their semi-final placing at this year’s World Cup that they are definitely the major favourites to top the group but second place should be attainable for the Scots. 

Russia overachieved as they hosted the summer’s World Cup. We don’t know if they maintain that high level or if they’ll go on a decline. 

The male Scottish team have a history of shooting themselves in the foot or slipping on banana skins. They’ve got two very decent ways of securing qualification for a major tournament for the first time in twenty years and they need to show passion and discipline not to balls the opportunity up! 

Personally, I’m really looking forward to 2019 and believe both our senior sides will give us memorable moments. 

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