Scotland face Morocco in a Group C clash at Gillette Stadium, on what could be a landmark day for them, as they look to inch closer to (or even seal) qualification for the knockout stages for the first time in their World Cup history.
Steve Clarke's team opened proceedings at the tournament with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Haiti. That was by no means a vintage Scotland performance, but the most important thing was to get the job done, and Scotland managed to do that, unlike a fair few more-fancied teams at this tournament already.
Morocco will be a bigger test than Haiti were for Scotland. The AFCON champions have quality oozing through their ranks, and have individual gamechangers aplenty in their side. They only managed to draw their first game, even if that was a more-than-creditable result against Brazil. Morocco are on-paper favourites for both their remaining games in the tournament, and will need to show that on the pitch.
Here's everything you need to know about Friday's game.
How to watch:
The match will be available on ITV1 in the UK, Fox Sports in the U.S., Zee5 in India and SBS in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details:
Date, kick-off time:
U.S. ET: Friday June 19, 6 p.m.
UK BST: Friday June 19, 11 p.m.
India IST: Saturday Jun 20, 3.30 a.m.
Australia AEST: Saturday June 20, 8 a.m
Venue: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev
Predicted Lineups
Scotland
Angus Gunn
Aaron Hickey | Grant Hanley | Jack Hendry | Andy Robertson
Scott McTominay | Lewis Ferguson | Ryan Christie
Ben Gannon-Doak | Lawrence Shankland | John McGinn
Morocco
Yassine Bounou
Achraf Hakimi | Issa Diop | Chadi Riad | Noussair Mazraoui
Neil El Aynaoui | Ayyoub Bouaddi
Brahim Díaz | Azzedine Ounahi | Bilal El Khannouss
Ismael Saibari
Talking Points
Clarke must assess Scotland's 4-4-2
It didn't quite work the way Steve Clarke would've expected it to against Haiti, so the Scotland boss will have to take a call on his system. Scotland lacked any sort of control in midfield, and couldn't manage the game well enough. It didn't help that neither Ché Adams nor Lawrence Shankland could hold the ball up with any sort of consistency either.
Against a Moroccan midfield filled with intensity and excellent technical ability, Scotland cannot afford to get outnumbered in the middle of the park. Billy Gilmour, who sustained a tournament-ending injury in a friendly before Scotland travelled over to the U.S., is a massive miss. Kenny McLean is an experienced option, but perhaps one that lacks the legs to play 90 minutes. Tyler Fletcher is an option on the other end of the scale to McLean, with his sheer inexperience at the highest level so far. That leaves Ryan Christie as perhaps the best option to slot into the centre of the park for Scotland. Christie provides legs in midfield, and his technical ability will help Scotland keep hold of the ball better.
In addition, Christie being their in midfield would also Scotland to get perhaps their biggest goal threat -- Scott McTominay -- into the box more often, with both their wingers and both their full-backs being competent crossers of the ball.
Morocco must replicate first half against Brazil
In that first half of their tournament opener against Brazil, Morocco showed just why they are one of the most-improved sides in the world in the last few years. They played with a swagger and an intensity that left the Brazilians chasing shadows at times. Young Ayyoub Bouaddi had a sensational game, with a performance that belied his teenage years.
Brahim Diaz and Bilal El Khannouss were consistent threats, Ismael Saibari kept running in behind, and Achraf Hakimi was non-stop down the flank. They couldn't quite replicate that in the second half, although that was down to Brazil just dealing with them in a better way.
That Brazil game was thought of as being Morocco's toughest tes tin the group stages. Scotland will provide a different type of challenge, and a lot less space in attacking areas than Brazil afford the Moroccans. If they play with the same intensity that they did in the first half against Brazil, then there may not be a team in this competition that will be able to shut Morocco out effectively.