Right, that’s it from me. Be sure to stick around for all the reports and reaction from tonight’s games. And thank you for all your emails and tweets. Cheerio!
A brave effort from Scotland then, but brave efforts won’t be enough to take them to France next year. Still, defeats against Germany won’t be the results that cost them – you feel that performance in Georgia is going to haunt them.
Thought Scotland did pretty well there.. Germany deserved winners but should be. Class apart.
— Ewan Murray (@mrewanmurray) September 7, 2015
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Peep! PEEP!! PEEEEEEP!!! All over. The corner is nodded away and the referee immediately blows for full time.
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90+3 min: Nothing happening for Scotland. Germany are holding them at arm’s length. Ritchie slings the ball in, though, and Boateng nods behind. Corner. Up comes Marshall …
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90+2 min: “Finally found a Scottish theme pub in Gdansk,” writes John Deans. “They’re showing the thrilling Gibraltar game.”
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90+1 min: Ozil sloooowwwwwllllyyyy makes his way off, Kramer comes on.
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90 min: Into stoppage time we go. There’ll be a minimum of two minutes added on.
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89 min: Ritchie scoops a free-kick into the box, Hanley awkwardly heads across the box.
87 min: If the scores stay the same across Europe this evening, Scotland will be six points behind Poland and four behind the Republic of Ireland with two games left to play.
85 min: Lovely stuff again from Germany. Gotze to Gundogan. Gundogan to Gotze. Gotze to Gundogan. Gundogan to Gotze. But the latter sidefoots wildly over the bar. That’s his last act – he’s replaced by Andre Schurrle.
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84 min: From the edge of the box Gundogan thrashes the ball at goal with the power of a thousand suns but Marshall is equal to it.
82 min: Ritchie scoops a cross into the box and finds Fletcher with the goal at his mercy … but the flag goes up!
81 min: Anya twice gets the better of Can and sends the ball into the box but twice a German head is there to meet it.
80 min: A loose touch from Fletcher sees the ball go out for a throw in and the groans come down from the stands. Scotland are going to make a double change: Brown and Forrest are replaced by Chris Martin and Matt Ritchie.
79 min: … Mulgrew crunches the set-piece against the wall. A waste.
77 min: Hutton wins a cheap free-kick off Kroos 40 yards from goal …
@John_Ashdown In case you are interested: the German fans just chanted "Ohne Holland fahren wir zur EM!" A classic.
— Lindan (@Cthuloid) September 7, 2015
This version?
75 min: Anya looks to go scampering behind Boateng but the centre-back is more than quick enough to tidy up the danger.
74 min: A scrappy couple of minutes as the sides exchange possession with abandon. Morrison clips Kroos to earn a talking-to from the referee.
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72 min: Hector looks to fizz a low cross into the six yard box but it’s straight at Marshall.
70 min: Hutton tumbles in the Germany box but Gundogan took the ball pretty cleanly.
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68 min: “With the astonishing amount of goals Muller scores for DFB, how many goals is he on?” wonders Mr J on Twitter. The two tonight take him up to 30 for the Mannschaft – level with Ernst Lehner and one behind Euro 96’s Andreas Moller.
67 min: In bad news for Scotland, the Republic of Ireland have just taken the lead against Georgia.
66 min: Scotland do finally get their collective foot on the ball, and they use it well. Hutton zips the ball in to Fletcher then follows his pass. Fletcher drops the ball off to the charging right-back, but Hutton’s shot crashes into the side-netting.
64 min: Slick stuff from Germany. Scotland can’t get a kick at the moment.
62 min: A horrible mistake from Mulgrew as he hands the ball straight to Muller on the right edge of the Scotland area. Muller picks out Gotze, who shovels the ball of to Schweinsteiger. His crunching shot is punched away by Marshall.
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60 min: Anya replaces Maloney.
59 min: Fletcher is – just for a second – clear behind the Germany back four. But he doesn’t realise and pops the ball out for Morrison. Or, more accurately, out for a throw in.
58 min: Maloney joins his team-mate in the book after a clumsy tackle on Can.
57 min: James Morrison goes into the book for a poor tackle on Schweinsteiger, then seconds later he chops down Kroos. He’s in the danger zone …
56 min: It was a great move, though, with Muller’s pull-back threaded between three defenders and picking out his team-mate perfectly. The finish wasn’t bad either: sidefooted onto the inside of the post from 10 yards.
55 min: Time between typing “Germany just looking a little frazzled” and goal: about five seconds.
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GOAL! Scotland 2-3 Germany (Gundogan 54)
This is a quite brilliant goal. Can to Muller in the right channel. Muller to Gundogan. Gundogan to Muller. Muller to Gundogan. Goal.
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53 min: This is a raucous, tumbledown, fun game now. Germany just looking a little frazzled.
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52 min: Hutton hoists the ball into the Germany box, but it’s far too close to Neuer.
50 min: Germany have the ball in the net once more … but again the flag is up. Gotze is a foot or so beyond the last man when he plants his header past Marshall.
In other news, Luxembourg v Belarus is in doubt because 16 players have been hit by food poisoning from spaghetti bolognese …
48 min: The pattern is the same as the first half – Germany’s players have the ball, Scotland are haring after them.
46 min: Can escapes down the right and slips the ball inside to Muller. He pulls back to Schweinsteiger but his shot is blocked at source.
Peep! Off we go again.
ht prediction: Ginter on for Can
— Raphael Honigstein (@honigstein) September 7, 2015
Half-time scores
Elsewhere in Group D the Republic of Ireland are struggling to break down Georgia. And Northern Ireland are goalless against Hungary.
- Northern Ireland 0-0 Hungary
- Scotland 2-2 Germany
- Republic of Ireland 0-0 Georgia
- Finland 1-0 Faroe Islands
- Poland 4-0 Gibraltar
- Romania 0-0 Greece
- Albania 0-0 Portugal
“I expect it has been said before but how much does Muller look like Animal from the Muppets in your picture?” wonders Derek Fordham. There’s definitely something there …
Peep! PEEEP!! Half-time. What a bonkers half of football. Well, a bonkers 17 minutes or so, at least.
44 min: Kroos swings in a corner. Hutton nods away.
GOAL! Scotland 2-2 Germany (McArthur 43)
… and it’s 2-2! Maloney’s corner is a poor one, at the first man, but the first man’s clearing header drops to James McArthur on the edge of the box. He sends a sidefoot volley back towards goal, and with Neuer unsettled by the multitude of heads trying and failing to get in the way, he can only get his fingertips on the ball. Scotland are level!
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42 min: Poor cross from Mulgrew, but he’s won his team a corner. Maloney to take …
40 min: Muller surges forward once more and finds Can on the overlap. The Liverpool player’s cross is too high for Ozil, though.
38 min: Germany have the ball in the net once more, but this time Gotze is offside.
37 min: Gundogan goes down claiming an elbow as he and Brown grapple while waiting for a throw. It was more of a grab, really, from the Scotland captain. Not much in it.
36 min: Muller has both of Germany’s goals – one a mis-hit that toe-poke that deflected in off a defender, the other a header from two yards out. He’s just the best.
The way Müller's scoring, I'm surprised he didn't beat Hummels to the equaliser as well
— Raphael Honigstein (@honigstein) September 7, 2015
GOAL! Scotland 1-2 Germany (Muller 34)
Well that was fun while it lasted. With the adreneline pumping, Scotland get a bit too ragged. Can has far too much space on the right to slap a shot at goal. Marshall saves, but Muller nods at goal from a couple of yards out. It hits the post but is a good yard over the line before Mulgrew hacks the ball away. Germany lead again.
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32 min: Forrest gets past Hector and has the chance to deliver the ball into the box but his cross is a poor one, behind the onrushing attackers, and the chance is gone.
30 min: Hampden is rocking now, as it should be. That was pretty dismal from Germany, to be perfectly honest. Can gave away an utterly needless free-kick and Neuer should probably have done more than palm the ball straight at a defender.
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GOAL! Scotland 1-1 Germany (Hummels 28og)
CRIPES! Scotland are level. Maloney whips a vicious low free-kick into the six-yard area. Neuer pushes the bouncing ball away but only straight at Hummels who can only block the thing back into his own goal.
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27 min: Controversy here. Can wrestles Mulgrew on the left edge of the Germany area to concede a free-kick. That was centimetres away from being a penalty. Still a dangerous free-kick …
25 min: A glorious little spell of one-touch stuff from Germany is ended on the edge of the area by the offside flag.
24 min: Fletcher scurries after a loose ball on the right and looks up to see a penalty area containing only white shirts.
Not sure this six at the back strategy will pay off for the Scots
— Raphael Honigstein (@honigstein) September 7, 2015
21 min: “Surely what Hector puts one in mind of is the droopy dog in the eponymous Hector’s House?” writes Charles Antaki. “A British classic (even if it was actually French).”
20 min: The goal had been coming. Mistake+misfortune is a killer combination.
19 min: A set piece, 45 yards from goal, out on the right – this is exactly the sort of situation Scotland need to take advantage of … but Mulgrew curls the ball straight into Neuer’s meaty palms.
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GOAL! Scotland 0-1 Germany (Muller 18)
And that’s the breakthrough. One mistake – James McArthur trying to nip in ahead of Muller to pinch the ball and failing – is enough to open Scotland up. Muller turns, skitters towards goal and pokes a weak shot towards Marshall, but the ball catches the heels of Russell Martin and deflects low past the stranded keeper.
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17 min: Morrison surges out of defence very nicely … but his pass towards Forrest is too heavy and out for a throw.
15 min: There’s plenty of effort from Scotland, that’s for sure. Fletcher is busting a gut up front.
13 min: Gundogan ends that period of possession with a loose touch that rolls out of play for a goal kick.
12 min: And we adopt the attack v defence training match position once more.
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11 min: A scrappy minute or two. Brown tidies up in midfield then slips a hospital pass out to Maloney who is crunched – fairly by Can.
9 min: Schweinsteiger drops into a sweeper position and pings a beautiful pass out to Hector. He feeds Muller, but his cross is blocked and Germany have to build again from deep.
7 min: Kroos drags a shot well wide from distance.
I can’t see the name Hector without thinking of Hunt For Hector, which was a kind of budget Where’s Wally? but with a sad pink dog instead of the eponymous walker. No, really.
6 min: Hutton charges down the right but Hector nicks the ball away. Still, the Germany left-back has to slide the ball out for a Scotland throw.
5 min: Germany keep the ball; Scotland keep pressing. In the end Schweinsteiger looks to dink the ball down the line for the onrushing Can but Mulgrew snuffs out the danger.
3 min: Hummels looks to bring the ball out from the back, but pings his pass towards Hector straight out of play. And in other news, I have the hiccups.
2 min: Scotland drop 11 men behind the ball as Kroos metronomes 40-odd yards from goal.
1 min: Pass, pass, pass from Germany. Passpasspasspasscrunch … Morrison whacks into Kroos to concede the game’s first free-kick.
Peep! Off we go. “Any thoughts on Can at right back?” writes Tim Woods. “He gave away the goal against Poland there. Whatever happens, I can’t see Jogi Löw getting quite as much ridicule for playing him out of position as Rodgers attracted last year.” Yeah, he’s an adequate fill-in there. But I wouldn’t fancy him against a top-drawer winger.
Flower of Scotland is being performed by the Red Hot Chilli Pipers. I can’t decide if that’s a brilliant name or a terrible one. They’re playing it at a different speed to the terrace singing. So it’s all a bit of a mess.
Click-clack, click-clack … the players are in the tunnel.
“The Neu! post takes me back to my dissertation. Surely, though, Hallog(o)allo would be more appropriate for tonight?” honks my colleague Dan Lucas.
The SFA have had a bad few days. And it’s not getting any better …
Raging @scottishfa. Just arrived to find advertising boards COMPLETELY obscuring disabled seating view. Unacceptable. pic.twitter.com/tOJ2DUHSoh
— David Brockett (@DavidBrockett) September 7, 2015
Here’s Gordon Strachan: “The players know France is still within their reach. You don’t get anywhere in lief without a bit of pain sometimes.
“We know what we’ve got to do with the ball, we know what we’ve got to do without the ball.”
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An email: “John, I see with Neu(er) and Can in the lineup tonight we have a nice Kosmiche Musik flavour to the German team,” writes Andy Wood. “Presumably Faust and Brainticket are in the bench?”
The actual teams
Scotland: Marshall; Hutton, R.Martin. Hanley, Mulgrew; Forrest, McArthur, Morrison, Brown, Maloney; S.Fletcher.
Germany: Neuer; Can, Boateng, Hummels, Hector; Schweinsteiger, Kroos; Muller, Gundogan, Ozil; Götze.
So Germany are as-per the graphic below other than Gundogan in the side instead of Leverkusen’s Karim Bellarabi. But there’s a bit of a surprise in the Scotland lineup – Chris Martin was expected to come in up front for Steven Fletcher but the Sunderland striker has kept his place in the XI. Anya, Naismith and Robertson all drop out from the side that faced Georgia – Grant Hanley, James Forrest and James McArthur come in.
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Here are the teams we’re expecting at Hampden this evening:
Preamble
Hello all. A pivotal evening in Group D, then. With Poland busy laying the smackdown to Gibraltar and the Republic of Ireland likely – though by no means guaranteed – to do the business in Dublin against Georgia, Scotland’s Euro 2016 dreams could be in tatters by the end of the night.
It had all been going reasonably well. They began with a plucky 2-1 defeat in Dortmund against the newly crowned world champions and beat Georgia a month or so later, but the key result that night was probably Poland’s surprise win over Germany. A creditable 2-2 draw in Poland followed to start a decent run of results – the win over the Republic of Ireland at Celtic Park, the 6-1 hammering of Gibraltar and a more-than-handy draw back in Dublin. Strachan’s side were in the box seat for the play-off spot at least before the defeat in Tbilisi on Friday derailed the campaign. The picture will be a bit clearer after tonight but Scotland will surely need to beat either tonight’s opponents or the Poles if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the finals next summer.
And it would be some tournament to miss. England will definitely be there. Wales will almost certainly be there. Northern Ireland could confirm their place this evening. And one (or both) of the Republic of Ireland and Scotland will be watching it from home, unless something extraordinary happens. Scotland could do with something extraordinary this evening.
Kick-off is at 7.45pm BST.
Glorious evening at Hampden. Head says Germany by a couple of goals.. Heart relying on football not always following logic.
— Ewan Murray (@mrewanmurray) September 7, 2015
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