Before Euro 2020 kicked off, one of the most highly anticipated matches of the competition was Friday’s Group D match between the original soccer rivals England and Scotland. The 115th edition of the oldest international football rivalry was about as bland as food from the two nations. The teams played to a 0-0 draw in what was by far the most boring match at Euro 2020 thus far.
John Stones struck the post with a header in the 11th minute and that was about it for good chances as the teams combine for two shots on target. England maintained 60 percent possession but was outshot 11-9 as the No. 4 team in the country rarely troubled Scotland, ranked No. 44.
The most entertaining moment of the match came in the dying moments, when what looked like a rugby scrum broke out in Scotland’s box. Scott McTominay, Manchester United’s midfielder who played more as a center back on Friday, looked like he was doing a pose from a Cristiano Ronaldo underwear photo shoot to avoid touching the ball with his arms before John McGinn finally ended the nonsense with a clearance.
The five seconds of stupid pretty accurately summed up the ho-hum match, in which England lacked any biting edge and Scotland was Scotland, even with the dynamic Kieran Tierney back in the lineup.
Raheem Sterling may have had a penalty shout in the 79th minute, but it would’ve been awfully harsh to bail this England squad out with a weak penalty kick.
¿Era penal?
Sterling cayó en el área, pero Mateu Lahoz decidió no marcar la pena máxima. ❌#ENG 0-0 #SCO#EuroTUDN I #VeranoDeCampeones I #EURO2020¡En vivo!
GRATIS en la app TUDN y @PrendeTV
https://t.co/B5zEVfRNV8 pic.twitter.com/yGMojp5483— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) June 18, 2021
The 0-0 draw was a fair result for the players, but not for the fans, who had so much anticipation for the match. This poor fella provided a more interesting highlight than any of the snoozers on the pitch.
England vs Scotland tonight.
SMILE! pic.twitter.com/Tg30RUOB01— LADbible (@ladbible) June 18, 2021
The point apiece means the Czech Republic now leads Group D with four points, ahead of England only on goal difference. Croatia and Scotland are even at one point and will face off on Tuesday knowing they must win to have any chance of moving on.