The fourth official indicates there will be three minutes added at the end of the 90 for stoppages.
89'
Vertonghen has a rare strike at goal looking for the far post from a long way out. The shot is taken with incredible venom but just misses his intended target and goes out for a Gordon goal-kick.
87'
Scotland have another opportunity squandered after a lovely bit of passing around the Belgium penalty area. The ball lands with Russell on the right-hand side but his strike is taken right at Courtois who lays out to stop the shot.
85'
B. Verstraete enters the game and replaces M. Dembélé.
Belgium wind down the clock with another change as Mousa Dembele makes way for another debutante – Birger Verstraete.
84'
Fraser forces a wonderful diving save out of Courtois from a long-range curling effort. Scotland have their first corner of the match!
82'
Snodgrass lifts the ball up for Russell who successfully knocks it down to Naismith to keep the Scotland attack going. Russell gets possession once again but his shot on Courtois is weak and poor to the goalkeeper’s near post.
77'
Having said that, Belgium don’t seem extremely intent on adding to their lead either. They have played exceptionally well this match, capitalising on a number of poor giveaways in midfield. Roberto Martinez should be thoroughly pleased with his side’s four-goal showing.
75'
Scotland have the look of a side that just want to stop the bleeding and end the match without things getting worse. They’re currently passing it around the defence very nonchalantly, as there is probably no way of them overcoming a four-goal deficit with less than 15 minutes remaining.
73'
G. Shinnie enters the game and replaces J. McGinn.
John McGinn is the latest player to be substituted out, with Graeme Shinnie taking his place with roughly 15 minutes left in this contest.
Minute
Description
70'
Vanaken plays Batshuayi into the penalty area with the striker looking to seal his hat-trick, but Souttar comes across to close down the angle and force Batshuayi to shoot from off-balance, his eventual effort hitting the side netting.
68'
J. Russell enters the game and replaces C. McGregor.
S. O'Donnell enters the game and replaces C. Mulgrew.
Charlie Mulgrew is removed with just over 20 minutes to play as Stephen O’Donnell comes on to replace him.
Callum McGregor’s cross for Naismith is his last contribution of the evening – Johnny Russell takes his position.
66'
Carrasco looks to take on Souttar, but the debutant wins out and he plays it to Naismith who keeps the attack going – though the counter has slowed considerably as Belgium is not allowing their hosts any space.
64'
COURTOIS MAKES THE SAVE! McGregor gets into space on the left and fires a pass into the area for Naismith who waits on it for a second before pounding a shot at goal from point-blank range. Courtois somehow manages to scramble across and get both palms to the ball to parry it away.
60'
M. Batshuayi has scored a goal for Belgium! Assist by Y. Tielemans.
Youri Tielemans is credited with the assist, as his slide tackle also worked effectively as a pass for Batshuayi.
IT’S BATSHUAYI AGAIN! 4-0 BELGIUM! Substituted in at half time, the striker now has two goals in 15 minutes as he manages to once again beat Gordon, this time from outside of the penalty area. Jack loses possession in midfield to a wonderful Tielemans tackle which allows Batshuayi to turn and run at goal before finding the back of the net via the goalkeeper’s bottom-right corner.
58'
Robert Snodgrass is played through by a wonderful pass on the right-hand side but the linesman flags for offside just before the midfielder can break into the penalty area.
56'
H. Vanaken enters the game and replaces E. Hazard.
Captain Eden Hazard makes way after contributing to two goals which allows for a first appearance in a Belgium kit for Hans Vanaken of Club Brugge!
53'
R. Snodgrass enters the game and replaces K. McDonald.
R. Jack enters the game and replaces S. Armstrong.
The second change is in attack, as Stuart Armstrong exits the pitch for Ryan Jack.
Immediately following the third goal, Alex McLeish makes a double substitution. The first of which is in midfield as Kevin McDonald is replaced by Robert Snodgrass.
52'
M. Batshuayi has scored a goal for Belgium! Assist by E. Hazard.
Eden Hazard now has an assist to add to his goal earlier today, his pass for Batshuayi was fantastically weighted for Batshuayi to hit in-stride.
MICHY BATSHUAYI MAKES IT THREE! Eden Hazard finds Michy Batshuayi virtually unmarked in the penalty area after a Mulgrew diagonal is given right to Dembele in midfield. Batshuayi takes the finish with a left-footed first-time hit which bends around Gordon who was left completely stranded. 3-0 for Belgium!
50'
Belgium make four changes at the break which certainly did not interrupt their first-half flow. The substitutes have slotted in seamlessly as Scotland are unable to move forward as a team and expand their full-backs’ roles. It looks like it’ll be a tough second half for the Tartan Army.
48'
Well that’s surely not the way Alex McLeish would have wanted his side to start the second half. They’ve got a lot of work to do if they want to claw themselves back into this match – which frankly they didn’t display in the first half.
46'
T. Vermaelen enters the game and replaces V. Kompany.
S. Naismith enters the game and replaces L. Griffiths.
T. Meunier enters the game and replaces T. Castagne.
Y. Carrasco enters the game and replaces D. Mertens.
E. Hazard has scored a goal for Belgium! Assist by Y. Carrasco.
M. Batshuayi enters the game and replaces R. Lukaku.
Centre-forward Leigh Griffiths is replaced at half time by Steven Naismith.
Vincent Kompany’s game is over – he’ll spectate the second half from the bench as Thomas Vermaelen comes on to replace him.
Dries Mertens is replaced in the Belgium attack by Yannick Carrasco.
Timothy Castagne’s debut appearance ends at the interval, with regular right full-back Thomas Meunier taking his role back.
Romelu Lukaku who put Belgium ahead will play no further part – Michy Batshuayi is his replacement.
Yannick Carrasco's influence is felt immediately as his pass set Eden Hazard up for his goal.
BELGIUM GO 2-0! Eden Hazard doubles the Red Devils’ advantage immediately after the restart from an absolute cannon-shot from an acute angle inside the penalty area. The strike was taken with considerable venom to Gordon’s near post after Eden Hazard shifted past his marker to open up space.
Belgium kick-off the second half leading by a goal to nil.
45' +2
HALF TIME: SCOTLAND 0-1 BELGIUM.
45' +1
Belgium have a corner before the end of the half which is taken by Thorgan Hazard. He sends the ball to the back-post and McGinn lets it roll out for a throw-in on the other side for Scotland.
45'
Gordon shuts the door to keep Belgium out as a near-post cross from Castagne is headed back by Eden Hazard which Gordon reacts to fantastically to make the stop. Lukaku is present to try and poke home the second effort, but the goalkeeper remains strong and makes the save, keeping Scotland in the match.
43'
Belgium are building well to end the half with a number of crosses entering the box putting evermore pressure on the relatively inexperienced Scotland defence. Gordon and his side get a break however as Castagne is called for a foul which allows the home side to clear their lines with two minutes before the interval.
41'
Boyata plays it out as Griffiths stays down with what looks to be a foot issue. He was complaining earlier in the half about his shoes – a problem which apparently hasn’t been resolved despite a new pair for the striker.
40'
Thorgan Hazard takes the in-swinger to Kompany on the edge of the six-yard box, and the centre-back makes fantastic contact, though he sends his effort narrowly over the bar, with the ball touching the beam on its way over.
39'
Castagne is now down after colliding with Gordon on a one-on-one opportunity thanks to a wonderful ball played over the top by Mertens. Gordon does make the save however which gives Belgium their first corner of the match.
38'
Fraser cuts inside from the right and interchanges with Griffiths which leads to a loss of possession – though McGinn endeavours to win it back and have a somewhat selfish strike on goal which Courtois has no problems saving.
36'
A poor sliding challenge in midfield by Tielemans gives Scotland a free-kick just inside the opposition half, though the referee keeps his cards in his pocket yet again.
34'
Lukaku gets wide on the left and puts a powerful cross into the area which sails over the head of Gordon and out for a Scotland throw on the other side.
32'
Tierney and Robertson exchange on the left before the former whips in a fantastic cross intended for Griffiths who is beaten in the air by the much larger Kompany.
28'
R. Lukaku has scored a goal for Belgium! Assist by T. Hazard.
Thorgan Hazard gets the assist for a simple cross-goal pass for Lukaku who simply had to tap it in.
SCOTLAND MAKE A MESS AND LUKAKU TAKES ADVANTAGE! 1-0 to Belgium! Gordon plays the ball to McGinn quickly after catching a Belgium cross and Dembele takes advantage of the Scotland midfielders’ lack of awareness, winning the ball high up the pitch and passing it to Thorgan Hazard. From there, Hazard plays a simple pass across the face of goal for Lukaku who takes his time before slotting it home.
27'
Boyata re-enters the pitch after limping to the sideline to receive further treatment – it looks as though he’ll carry on and test his limits. Belgium do have Alderweireld on the bench who’s a quality replacement however if a switch is needed.
25'
Courtois puts the ball out of play as there seems to be some issue with Boyata who is holding his right knee after stretching out to dispossess Armstrong. The trainers are on the pitch and its uncertain whether or not he will be able to continue.
23'
McGinn wins the ball in midfield and has a run towards goal, choosing to have a shot at Courtois from outside the penalty area despite his options left and right. Courtois does well to take the sting out of the shot but embarrasses himself slightly by allowing the bounce to go through his legs – though he was never in danger of an own-goal.
21'
Armstrong looks for a one-two pass with McGregor on the edge of the penalty area but the right forward is muscled off the ball by Kompany and possession is returned to Belgium.
19'
Robertson intercepts a Boyata pass intended for Castagne but has no options so the full-back is forced to boot it long and give Belgium a throw-in, inside their own half.
17'
Eden Hazard finds Lukaku in the penalty area but the Manchester United striker’s first touch fails him and Tierney clears away. The ball comes back into Belgium’s attack however and Mertens has a shot from some distance which curls away from the goalkeeper’s right-hand post.
15'
A promising Scotland counter-attack with Robertson breaks down in midfield as the midfield’s indecisiveness led to too many passes – the last of which was intercepted well by Dembele on the edge of his own penalty area.
13'
Scotland’s formation, which McLeish had originally intended to be a three-man defence, is now looking like five across as Robertson and Fraser are being forced to drop deeper and deeper to account for the threat of Belgium’s wide players. This is severely hampering their options going forward – and allows Belgium to own much of the field unchallenged.
11'
Thorgan Hazard gives away a free-kick just inside the Belgium half on the right-wing after Fraser has his shirt tugged from behind. Scotland choose to take it short and promptly lose possession.
9'
Thorgan Hazard finds his brother with a great pass into the penalty area and Eden cuts inside to elude his marker before passing it back to Thorgan who tries an ill-advised one-time shot which goes wide.
7'
It’s Mertens who tries his luck and he does well to get it up-and-over the end of the wall, but Gordon gets down immediately with an instinctive dive and manages to hang onto the set-piece.
6'
Eden Hazard wins a free-kick in a central position just outside the penalty area after Kompany’s pass put the Belgium captain in a great position to cut inside from the left flank.
4'
Belgium turn the ball over near their own penalty area and McDonald slides a beautiful pass through two defenders for Griffiths who wanders just offside – noted immediately by the linesman.
3'
Belgium are knocking the ball around confidently and finding space with which to work, despite Scotland’s initial high pressing. Eden Hazard is already seeing a fair amount of the ball which is a trend that should continue throughout the night.
1'
Scotland get the friendly underway from the kick-off!
With the disappointment of another failed World Cup qualification campaign in the rear-view mirror – manager Alex McLeish and the Scotland national team can now turn their attention forward to a prestigious friendly match before their UEFA Nations League tournament begins on September 10th against Albania.
Good evening and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the international friendly between Scotland and Belgium taking place at Hampden Park in Glasgow!
Belgium will take to the pitch at Hampden in their first match since a 2-0 victory over England in Russia secured the Red Devils as World Cup bronze medalists. It was an incredibly successful tournament for Hazard and Kompany – the nation’s best-ever finish at a World Cup.
Things haven’t gone as hoped so far for McLeish in his second stint in charge of the national team – losing three of his first four matches – scoring only once in the process. Defeats to Costa Rica, Peru and Mexico have not gone over well; however, things could be looking up for the Tartan Army and their newly appointed captain – Andrew Robertson.
The friendly with Scotland will serve as a precursor to Belgium’s first match in their own Nations League group – a tough tie away at Iceland. With only one loss in their last 26 matches – the semi-final defeat to France in the World Cup – Roberto Martinez’s side look poised to continue their fantastic form with another attacking performance.
With 15 minutes to go, it's about time we took a look at how the two sides will line up this evening! Let's start with Scotland.
Scotland Substitutes: Jordan Archer, Allan McGregor, Stephen O’Donnell, Graeme Shinnie, James Forrest, Ryan Jack, Scott McTominay, Callum Paterson, Robert Snodgrass, Steven Naismith, Johnny Russell.
Scotland Starting XI (3-4-3): Craig Gordon; Andrew Robertson, Charlie Mulgrew, John Souttar; Kieran Tierney, Kevin McDonald, John McGinn, Ryan Fraser; Stuart Armstrong, Leigh Griffiths, Callum McGregor.
Alex McLeish chooses to continue to experiment with three central defenders, which allows both captain Robertson and full-back Tierney to get into the same side despite playing a similar role. John Souttar gets his first international cap in defence which is rounded out by Mulgrew in the middle and Fraser on the right wing. The midfield features a combined 10 Scotland appearances in McGinn and McDonald, while the attack is sustained by veteran Griffiths, and supported by McGregor and Armstrong.
Belgium Substitutes: Matz Sels, Koen Casteels, Toby Alderweireld, Thomas Vermaelen, Thomas Meunier, Leander Dendoncker, Axel Witsel, Hans Vanaken, Birger Verstraete, Yannick Carrasco, Nacer Chadli, Michy Batshuayi, Leandro Trossard.
Though they haven’t been great, Scotland could be in at half time with the scores level if it wasn’t for a poor giveaway in midfield by McDonald which led to Lukaku’s opening goal – the only one of the match so far. Belgium controlled large spells of the match, retaining most of the possession and forcing Scotland to drop deeper than expected and hit on the counter.
McLeish will be happy as his side have shown a couple individual moments of class, though overall Scotland have been much too ponderous and unsure. Several chances have been squandered without even a shot on target due to too much interchange in midfield. Robertson and Tierney have done well on Scotland’s left, despite the rarity of their partnership. Most meaningful attacks for the home side have come down that wing – which is Scotland’s best avenue to score.
Belgium Starting XI (3-4-3): Thibaut Courtois; Dedryck Boyata, Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen; Timothy Castagne, Youri Tielemans, Mousa Dembele, Thorgan Hazard; Dries Mertens, Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard.
Roberto Martinez maintains much of the starting XI that won bronze at the Russia 2018 World Cup but also adds some fresh faces. Courtois, Vertonghen and Kompany are all retained while Boyata replaces Alderweireld in defence. Castagne and Thorgan Hazard are in for Chadli and Meunier on the flanks, while Axel Witsel is on the bench in favour of Dembele in midfield. In attack, the injury to Kevin De Bruyne means Lukaku and Eden Hazard will play with Mertens on the right.
That concludes our live coverage of the international friendly between Scotland and Belgium! We hope you enjoyed our commentary and we look forward to seeing you again soon!
Next up for Belgium is their first UEFA Nations League match – a tough away tie against Iceland on September 11th, while Scotland feature in the same competition on September 10, when they host Albania.
Unforced errors were Scotland’s biggest undoing, as three of Belgium's goals came directly off of misplaced passes or losing possession in a central area. Mousa Dembele’s contribution won't be noted in the stat-sheet, but his two tackles won in midfield directly contributed to Belgium goals. Alex McLeish will have to go back to the drawing board to rework his tactics, as he cannot afford for his side to essentially gift opposition sides chances on target.
Belgium took full control of the game immediately after the restart when Eden Hazard’s goal a minute after kick-off doubled their lead and seemingly broke Scotland’s resolve. The older Hazard was also involved six minutes later, assisting Batshuayi’s goal – Belgium’s third. More confusion in the Scotland midfield allowed Youri Tielemans to dispossess Ryan Jack which set Batshuayi up for his second goal, 15 minutes later. It was a thoroughly dominant display from the away side who saw out the final 20 minutes in relative comfort.
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