Gareth Southgate says it would be “ridiculous” to overly experiment as England head to hostile Hampden Park to face in-form foes Scotland in a so-called friendly.
Both sides are on the cusp of qualification for next summer’s European Championship as they meet on Tuesday evening for the 116th edition of the world’s oldest international fixture.
Southgate sees England’s first friendly fixture since March 2022 as an important test and learning step for his side, fresh from Saturday’s challenging 1-1 draw against Ukraine.
Scotland have won their last five matches and will be roared on by a sold-out Hampden Park crowd on Tuesday, when the 53-year-old knows he has to get the balance right with his selection.
“We’ve got to find the right balance of physical freshness – we’ve had a day less preparation – experience, finding out about some players, winning, playing well,” Southgate said.
“So, the usual things that are expected of us with England, really.
“But I think the first thing is we can’t fiddle around with the team because we’re playing a top-level side, who are going to be at full tilt and giving us a really high-level challenge.
“So, you can’t overly experiment because that would be ridiculous.”
Southgate largely stuck with the tried and tested with his squad selection for this September double-header, leading to starts for Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson against Ukraine.
It was the former’s first competitive start of the season and the first time the latter had represented his country since swapping Liverpool for Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq.
Southgate was criticised by some for selecting the pair against Ukraine, while a disjointed, toothless performance hardly set pulses racing.
“I haven’t seen it, so the reaction for us is, we’re top of the group,” said the England boss, who could hand Levi Colwill and Eddie Nketiah their debuts in Glasgow.
“I think we’re the top scorers in Europe. The boys did a really good job in a difficult environment and we know that our attacking play didn’t quite click.
“I think some of that was the surface, really, because to make those really incisive, quick passes at times you just needed a little extra touch or there was a little bobble.
“I’m very conscious I wasn’t going to be too harsh on my internal review with the players.
“Because you could see moments when we’re watching it back where the ball pops over players’ feet or (someone) goes to play a ball first time, and it lofts in the air.
“Equally, that wasn’t the case with everything that we did, so we’re always challenging. We want to be better and better and we’ve got to set a high standard.
“We weren’t as happy coming away with the point as we might have been but it’s still a really good result.
“We saw what happened in our group later that night (with Italy drawing 1-1 with North Macedonia).
“When we beat North Macedonia people were questioning the quality that they had and the standard of the opposition, but Italy went there and couldn’t get the win.
“So, we kind of know the cycle, frankly, with England. I’ve been in the job long enough now.
“It’s constant, it’s never-ending, but we have to really focus internally on what’s important for us.
“Review to our own standards, review and make sure that we know what we’re working towards, and what we’re comparing ourselves against, really.”
Southgate believes the trip to Glasgow will help in that on a night when England and Scotland will commemorate the 150th anniversary of their first meeting on November 30, 1872.
The former defender admitted he was briefly a member of the Tartan Army in his childhood.
“I mean, this is horrendous what I’m going to say here ahead of tomorrow, but I was supporting Scotland in 1978 because obviously we hadn’t qualified,” the England boss said.
“I kind of followed that through the trauma of Peru and the Netherlands.
“Then we were back in ’82 and all of a sudden, you know, for me then onwards it was all about England.
“But, yeah, great fixtures. I’ve met so many of the former players over the years – worked with some of them, played with some of them.
“It’s a fabulous game. I know there’s a rivalry and I know people will be wary of it crossing a boundary, but it’s a brilliant sporting rivalry and it’s a great game to be involved in.”
Ancelotti defends Kroos substitution against Bayern Munich
Carlo Ancelotti defended his decision to substitute Toni Kroos during Real Madrid's 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich.
The two European heavyweights shared the spoils in a thrilling Champions League semi-final first leg at the Allianz Arena, where Vinicius Junior's late penalty levelled the tie.
Vinicius had opened the scoring in the 24th minute after latching onto Kroos' delicious throughball, one of a game-high 15 line-breaking passes the Germany midfielder played during the first half.
The 34-year-old was replaced by Brahim Diaz for the final 14 minutes of the contest, which Bayern had turned around thanks to second-half strikes from Leroy Sane and Harry Kane.
But Ancelotti, who knows the support of Madrid's fans will be crucial when he welcomes his former club to Santiago Bernabeu for next week's second leg, explained his thinking.
"Jude Bellingham had cramp, Toni Kroos played a spectacular game, but the plan was to try to recover the control of the game by putting fresh legs in," the Italian told reporters during his post-match press conference.
"As always, at this point in the season, we have a great opportunity to play in another final. It's an even tie against a great team. It will be another 90 minutes of suffering, but in an atmosphere that we know quite well. The fans are going to help us."
Meanwhile, Thomas Tuchel knows Bayern will have their work cut out in the second leg, but has encouraged his players to be confident and embrace the challenge.
"The situation is now very clear," he said. "We go to Madrid and the winner takes it all. We are ready to fight. It is important to believe that.
"It is still possible. It is 50-50. It is one of the toughest places to win, but that is also what makes this challenge exciting."
Manchester United clearout continues as two more senior boardroom figures depart
Manchester United have continued their clearout under Jim Ratcliffe by confirming the departures of Patrick Stewart and Cliff Baty.
Interim chief executive Stewart and chief financial officer Baty will depart Old Trafford at the end of the current campaign.
Stewart, who replaced Richard Arnold in the position at the start of the year, will be temporarily replaced by Jean-Claude Blanc until Omar Berrada arrives in July, while Roger Bell will take over from Baty.
The news was confirmed by United on their official website on Tuesday.
INEOS Sport chief Blanc is well known to Ratcliffe, who recently bought a 27.7-per-cent stake in United and is in control of footballing affairs.
Bell also has ties to INEOS and will now take up the same CFO role at Old Trafford.
Ratcliffe said: "I would like to personally thank both Patrick and Cliff for their support in helping us get to know the club and making us feel welcome and I respect their decisions to now move on as we establish a new management team for the club."
Executive co-chairman Joel Glazer said: "I would like to thank Patrick and Cliff for their dedicated service to Manchester United and wish them well for the future.
"Both have been a source of invaluable advice and expertise over many years, and Patrick has served an important role as interim CEO during this transitional phase."
Since Ratcliffe purchased a minority stake in United, the club have made a number of other changes behind the scenes.
John Murtough stepped down as football director after more than a decade at the club, with Dan Ashworth lined up to replace him, while Jason Wilcox has been appointed as technical director.
United are sixth in the Premier League with four games remaining, raising questions over the future of manager Erik ten Hag under the new regime.
Bayern were victims of Real Madrid's lethal efficiency, says Tuchel
Bayern Munich were victims of Real Madrid's lethal efficiency in Tuesday's 2-2 draw but the Germans are ready to beat them in next week's Champions League semi-final return leg, says coach Thomas Tuchel.
The Bavarians struck twice in four minutes early in the second half with a shot from Leroy Sane and a Harry Kane penalty to turn the game around after Vinicius Junior had put the visitors ahead in the 24th against the run of play.
Brazilian striker Vinicius also bagged an equaliser with an 83rd-minute spot kick as Bayern were pushing for a third goal.
Tuchel felt Bayern were in a strong position to stretch their lead going into the closing stages, but instead they will travel to Madrid next Wednesday with the tie all square.
"The result is what it is and it is not worth spending any time thinking about it," Tuchel, who will leave Bayern at the end of the season after a disappointing domestic campaign, said at his post-match press conference.
"Real have done it before, to score twice with two chances.
"We are not the first team to suffer that. They have the finish, they have the quality to do that."
Reflecting on the match, Tuchel added: "We had a strong start, then we lost a bit of our rhythm.
"Then [later in the game] we should have scored a third, but we were not efficient enough, not cold enough to add a third. Then we gifted them a penalty."
Bayern enjoyed a strong start and also had chances to score again after going 2-1 up.
They will now need to win against Real, who are chasing a 15th European Cup, in Madrid if they are to advance to the final at Wembley.
Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain face each other in the other semi-final, with the first leg of that tie taking place on Wednesday.
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