Scotland midfielder Billy Gilmour will miss his team’s final Euro 2020 Group D match against Croatia after testing positive for COVID-19, the Scottish FA has confirmed.
In a statement, it said that Gilmour – who plays club football for Chelsea – will self-isolate for 10 days after the positive test and now misses Scotland‘s third match at Hampden Park in Glasgow on Tuesday.
We can confirm that Billy Gilmour has tested positive for COVID-19.
Having liaised with Public Health England, Billy will now self-isolate for 10 days and therefore miss tomorrow’s UEFA EURO 2020 Group D match against Croatia at Hampden.https://t.co/lRNWvckqCK
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) June 21, 2021
According to Sky Sports News, no other players are understood to have been affected or identified as close contacts, meaning the remainder of Scotland’s squad will be available.
England’s 26-man squad have all returned negative COVID-19 tests and trained on Monday ahead of their final Group D game with the Czech Republic, the English FA confirmed.
The Scots must beat Croatia at Hampden Park to progress to the knockout stages, in what is their first major tournament in 25 years.
Both sides are on one point after two matches, while England and the Czech Republic are on four points ahead of their Wembley meeting.
“The Scottish FA can confirm that a member of the Scotland national team playing squad, Billy Gilmour, has tested positive for COVID-19,” the SFA said.
“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.”
The remaining 25 members of the squad have been training as normal on Monday.
Gilmour tracks Raheem Sterling at Wembley
Gilmour was expected to start again against Croatia after his display at Wembley, which would have put him directly against Real Madrid’s midfield maestro Luka Modric.
Scotland coach Steve Clarke, who will hold a news conference later, will now need to rethink his plans.
Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay, who slotted back into a defensive role against England, is likely to be returned to his usual position protecting the back three.
What a performance by the boys tonight. Fans were unreal all night! 🙌🏼🏴 pic.twitter.com/SVTxmgPfLx
It’s the second time that COVID has forced Clarke into a squad reshuffle.
Prior to Euro 2020, midfielder John Fleck tested positive and missed Scotland’s warm-up game against the Netherlands, along with six people who were in close contact with him.
And Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets missed his country’s first two matches after a positive COVID-19 test on the eve of the tournament.
The Barcelona star, who was named captain in the absence of Sergio Ramos, will return for Spain’s final group game against Poland.
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