PREVIEW: Brazil and Scotland meet in Group C decider | OneFootball

Scotland’s hopes of reaching the knockout rounds of a World Cup lie in this match against Brazil, Steve Clarke’s side currently sit third and have a reasonable chance of going through should they avoid a heavy defeat this evening, thanks to their 1-0 win over Haiti 10 days ago.

Meanwhile, Brazil currently top the group, having drawn 1-1 with Morocco in their opener, before beating Haiti 3-0 last time out thanks to goals from Matheus Cunha and Vinicius Junior. Carlo Ancelotti’s side will be hoping for a similar result this evening in Miami, which would see them top the group barring a particularly stellar performance from Morocco against Haiti.

The two nations have crossed paths five times before; however, Scotland have never got one over the Brazilians, with their best result being a 0-0 draw at the 1974 World Cup some 52 years ago. Since then, Brazil have beaten Scotland four times, 2-0 in a 2011 friendly, 4-1 at the 1982 World Cup, 1-0 at Italia 90 and 2-1 in France at the 1998 World Cup. So, there is a rich, but unfortunate for Scotland, history between the two at major tournaments. Could tonight be the time Scotland get their win?

Whilst under no illusions as to how difficult the task ahead is, this is certainly the best Scotland side of the century, qualifying ahead of Denmark for the tournament and also winning their first game at the World Cup since 1998 in that match with Haiti. However, Brazil will likely see this as a par for the course type game that they are expected to take three points from and top the group.

A loss could still see Scotland advance to the knockout stages of a World Cup for the first time ever, though, as they will likely still rank amongst the eight best third-placed teams in the competition.

Kick-off is scheduled for 11pm BST, and UK coverage can be watched on BBC One.