WCQ Preview: Europe - Group 9

Saturday, 6 September 2008
14:00 FYR Macedonia v Scotland
18:00 Norway v Iceland

FYR Macedonia – Scotland

18,000 fans, including the visiting Tartan Army, will gather in the Skopje City Stadium without really know what to expect, as these two nations have never met before.

Hosts Macedonia, like many of their Balkan neighbours, will play a slow, patient game in the sweltering summer heat. Many of the Scotland squad, meanwhile, play in the hyper-paced, full-blooded Scottish Premier League and, despite boss George Burley's claims to the contrary, will be in danger of overheating under the pressure.

Indeed, this game will be Burley's first competitive match in charge of the national team. Thus, he doesn't know exactly how his team is going to react.

Furthermore, his squad has been ravaged by injury. Star man Alan Hutton, skipper Barry Ferguson and bullish midfielder Lee McCulloch are long-term crocks. Now, six more have added to the injury list, with some untested replacements stepping in.
However, this shouldn't make a massive difference, as this week's call-offs were largely fringe players. In order to negotiate a tricky test, Burley just needs to put out a solid side who are experienced enough to conserve energy.

Putting the ball in the net is the real concern. Forwards Kenny Miller and James McFadden failed to strike up an understanding during the 0-0 friendly draw with Northern Ireland and, thus, red-hot Miller could get the nod to go it alone.

His support will come from deeper. Darren Fletcher has started the season well in Manchester United colours, Celtic's hard-working midfielders Scott Brown and Paul Harley are made for games like this and their resurgent teammate Shaun Maloney's killer passing and set-piece prowess could be key.

Nevertheless, the Scots are a tad Jekyll and Hyde on their travels. A fabulous 1-0 win in France put them on the brink of Euro 2008 qualification before a trip do Georgia ended in humiliation, snapping the carrot from its string. So who exactly are Scotland facing this time?

Former Slovenia and Olympiacos boss Srečko Katanec has some interesting players at his disposal. 25-year-old Lazio hitman Goran Pandev is the the Red Lions' stand-out. Veteran SV Mattersburg defender Goce Sedloski has some 85 caps and leads from the back. Ipswich midfielder Veliče Šumulikoski is known as "the Balkan Gerrard" and is always lively.

And they're building a decent reputation. During 2006 qualifying they managed two draws against the Netherlands, who went on to beat Scotland in the play-offs, before holding England in Manchester and beating Croatia in the Euro 2008 preliminaries. Scotland cannot take this team lightly.

Strangely, rookie ref Pavel Kralovec will oversee the contest, despite limited experience and a recent six-match ban.

Norway – Iceland

Norway are an awkward blend of the awesome and the average.

Åge Hareide's men last qualified for a major finals eight years ago, making a first round exit at Euro 2000. They also made it to two World Cups – USA '94 and France '98 – around that time, meaning that Norwegian fans enjoyed the thrill of three out of four finals from '94-'00. A veritable golden era, you might say.

Since then, it's all dried up. Norway are constantly threatening to turn a corner onto Success Street, but a lack of conviction and a terrible case on the inconsistencies has let them down in recent years.

When they get their act together, they can clearly put sides to bed. Recent highlights include home and away thrashings of Malta in Euros qualifying and a 4-0 battering of Hungary, a 2-1 friendly win over Argentina last August and productive friendly draws against Uruguay and Ireland. Against the Republic, in particular, they looked very sharp and were unlucky not to win.

However, a home qualifying defeat at the hands of unfancied Bosnia and a 3-0 friendly defeat in Wales in February – four away wins in ten overall – is not major Championship form and must change.

Who;s going to do it, then? Skipper Brede Hangeland of Fulham, Roma man John Arne Riise, brilliant-but-inconsistent Blackburn midfielder Morten Gamst Pedersen and born-again beanpole John Carew. Aston Villa man Carew, in particular, must be afforded top-class service if Norway are going to cause an upset in this group.

Visitors Iceland have never been to a major tournament and have a FIFA ranking of 107. The last time they played Norway was in a 2002 friendly, where they claimed a credible 1-1 draw. In the five clashes before that, dating back to 1972, Norway have won three and Iceland two.

The Icelanders have only won two of their last ten on the road, including a promising 2-1 friendly victory over Slovakia in March. But do Strákarnir okkar have what it takes to survive in this tricky group?

They certainly do have recent history with rivals Scotland, who pipped them to a play-off place during Euro 2004 qualification.

Boss Ólafur Jóhannesson is a carpenter by trade, and will need to be extremely crafty, for he doesn't have many top class players at his disposal. Portsmouth man Hermann Hreiðarsson is a superb 'attacking defender'. There's two more Premiership players in the shape of Bolton duo Heiðar Helguson and Grétar Rafn Steinsson. Midfielder-cum-striker Eiður Guðjohnsen has long been their top name, but his sharpness will be in question after being frozen out of the Barcelona first team. Reggina player Emil Hallfreðsson is a useful squad member.

But that's about it. Unfortunately for the fans, threadbare Iceland have a colossal task in store if they're to stay competitive in this group, much less be in contention.