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Rediff.com  » Sports » Managers reject 'bloodbath' talk before England-Scotland clash

Managers reject 'bloodbath' talk before England-Scotland clash

November 18, 2014 14:15 IST
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Roy Hodgson manager of England looks on

Roy Hodgson manager of England looks on alongside players during an England training session. Photograph: Gareth Copley/Getty Images

England manager Roy Hodgson appeared to play down the old rivalry between Scotland and England when he said Tuesday's friendly was just another game, despite the intense atmosphere likely at Celtic Park.

The Auld Enemy game was once one of the highlights of the season, but since 1989 when the annual meetings ended, the two have met only four times -- the last 15 months ago when England won 3-2 at Wembley.

Their last meeting in Scotland was 15 years ago when England won the first leg of a Euro 2000 playoff 2-0 at Hampden Park.

Asked if there can be such thing as a ‘friendly’ between England and Scotland, Hodgson told a news conference: "Why not? I don't really know why not? The game at Wembley last year was fantastic for us, we had to pull out all the stops. For me that's the type of friendly you want.

"Qualifying has to be our be-all and end-all but in between we are trying to find fixtures that will test us, give us a flavour of matches to come.

"I won't go down the obvious route of 'we don't like the Scots' or 'they don't like us' because in my lifetime it's not something I've come across," he said.

The rivalry between the two neighbours dates back 142 years to their first official meeting in 1872 with England winning 46 times and Scotland 41 since then.

Both go into the match in good spirits after Scotland beat Ireland 1-0 in their Euro 2016 qualifier on Friday and England beat Slovenia 3-1 at Wembley on Saturday.

Scotland manager Gordon Strachan defended the physical intensity that made their Euro 2016 qualifier against Ireland such an enthralling spectacle and says the same passion is likely to feature in their friendly against England.

  Gordon Strachan the manager of Scotland

Gordon Strachan the manager of Scotland talks with Steven Whittaker during a training session. Photograph: Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Dismissing any suggestion their 1-0 win over Ireland on Friday was ‘a bloodbath’, he said the fiercely competitive Group D match, which Scotland won thanks to a ‘wee bit of magic’ from goalscorer Shaun Maloney, was played in ‘terrific spirit’.

England will be playing on Scottish soil for the first time in 15 years at Celtic Park, and matches between the two - dating back 142 years - have never been for the faint-hearted.

"It will be intense tomorrow and the English players will enjoy the atmosphere, I think," he said on Monday at Scotland's training camp at Bishopton, 15 miles west of Glasgow.

"Friday's match was physical but fair. Let's make that correct. I think people think it was some sort of bloodbath, it was nothing like that.

"It was people going toe to toe and respecting each other - there is a big difference from that and a bloodbath, which we have seen many times over the years.

"It was a game played in the right manner. I thought it was played in a terrific spirit and I know it is going to be the same tomorrow night.

"Everyone on our side is a competitor and they want to make it as difficult as possible for the other team to win. Fortunately we had a wee bit of magic on our side that allowed us to win but it will be as intense tomorrow, that's for sure."

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