June 21, (THEWILL)- The tight corner that Scotland has found itself in the ongoing Euros 2020, where it is bottom of Group D on one point, has been made a lot trickier with the news that broke on Monday about Billy Gilmour testing positive for COVID-19. This blows a hole in their determined pursuit of qualifying through the group stages ahead of Scotland’s Group D decider against Croatia on Tuesday.
This is because the Czech Republic currently leads the group jointly with England on four points apiece and while Scotland will be required to be at their best against Croatia to improve their lot, the Chelsea midfielder was named man of the match on his full international debut on Friday last week when Scotland drew with England at Wembley.
His absence will be hugely felt on Tuesday because the positive test result comes with the implication of a 10-day self-isolation requirement after returning a positive test result, according to the health and safety regulations in the region.
In an official statement, the Football Association of Scotland said: “The Scottish FA can confirm that a member of the Scotland National Team playing squad, Billy Gilmour, has tested positive for COVID-19.
“Having liaised with Public Health England since the positive test was recorded, Billy will now self-isolate for 10 days and therefore miss tomorrow’s UEFA Euro 2020 Group D match against Croatia at Hampden.”
In the continental competition so far, Scotland lost their opener 2-0 against the Czech Republic but played a better match with Gilmour brilliant to find a point in the goalless draw against England. They will need a clear win against Croatia to stand any chance of making it further in the competition. It will be no mean feat, though Croatia have just a single point after two matches too.
The blow of Gilmour’s absence will resonate even if Scotland survives beyond the group stages. The possibility is they will meet the winners of Group E, which will be Sweden – at Hampden Park on June 29 based on the scheduling. How they can upturn that to progress will require more than herculean efforts.
The Chelsea player who demonstrated his potential for performing under pressure admirably and whose linkup play was essential to the team’s performance against England, Gilmour has been a revelation for Scotland and his contribution to the game will be sorely missed at this crunch time for his country.
It is a far cry but if Scotland can go far in the competition, maybe the 20-year-old can feature again post-COVID before the continental games are over.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
