England mental strength set to be tested by Scots
England head coach Roy Hodgson and captain Wayne Rooney are expecting a significant test when they face Scotland at Celtic Park on Tuesday night.
Hodgson announced his team to his squad at 7pm on Monday but refused to hint at his line-up in his pre-match news conference.
“Everyone is fit,” said Hodgson. “You will have to wait and see what the team will be.
“It’s a very exciting game, a big game,” he continued. “We know we”ll be given a tough test by a Scotland team wanting to win the game and I’m hoping and believing we’ll have the same degree of hope and expectation from our side.
“The fans here give Celtic and I’m sure Scotland an incredible support. We’ll have to deal with that in terms of not letting it affect us mentally, and we can learn from it possibly. For some of our younger players, they won’t have experienced that type of game before.”
Rooney, who passed 100 caps on Saturday against Slovenia, has been passing on his knowledge of playing at Scotland’s temporary home.
“It will be a great test,” he said. “I’ve played here before on big nights in Champions League. The atmosphere will be very loud and very intense. I’ve spoken to a few of the younger players, to make sure they’re ready for the start of the game because if you’re not ready it can take you by surprise, but I’m sure we’ll be ready.”
Hodgson declined to engage in a discussion of a rivalry between the two countries.
“How far in history do you want to go to talk about animosity between the two countries?” he asked. “I am not going to head down that route of the English not liking the Scots because in my lifetime I’ve not experienced it.”
Coach and captain both shared their memories of matches between what is the oldest rivalry in international football, having first been played in 1872.
“The painful one was just after the World Cup in 1966 when [Jim] Baxter ran us ragged,” said Hodgson. “I watched the game on the television. Scotland came down in 1967 and gave that wonderful display, which was personified by Jimmy Baxter in the middle of the park.”
“The biggest moment I can remember is Paul Gascoigne scoring at Wembley at 1996,” said Rooney recalling a famous goal by his one-time Everton team-mate. “That’s certainly the highlight.”
Rooney added: “We are on a good run at the moment and it is important to keep getting these results.
“Our next game is in March so we don’t want to come off a bad result. We went to end the year on a high.”
In bouncing back from a highly disappointing World Cup, England have won all four of their qualifying matches and look certain to qualify for Euro 2016 while Scotland are celebrating Friday’s 1-0 defeat of Ireland, which keeps their hopes alive in Group D.
With goalkeeper Joe Hart rested, Hodgson has to make a choice between Southampton’s Fraser Forster, who was a Celtic player until the summer, and West Brom’s Ben Foster.
Hodgson said: “The major focus is on Fraser. If I choose Fraser it won’t be for any sentimental Celtic reasons. I think it will be because he deserves a start.
“I must also add that Ben Foster also deserves a start. They’ve both been doing fantastically well in training. I am sure both would like to play but I am going to disappoint one of them.”
This article originally appeared on ESPNFC.com
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