3/1 To Win
David Marshall is relishing the prospect of being part of the Scotland squad for the upcoming UEFA European Championships.
Derby County’s 36-year-old shot-stopper played a key role in the Tartan Army’s qualification campaign to what will be their first major tournament since 1998.
He was lauded for his penalty shoot-out heroics in the Play-Off matches against Israel and Serbia at the end of last year to seal their place alongside Europe’s elite on the big stage.
The goalkeeper, who made 33 appearances for Derby in the 2020/21 season after signing from Wigan Athletic last summer, has 43 caps to his name at senior level for Scotland.
The former Celtic custodian will look to see off competition from Craig Gordon of Heart of Midlothian and Rangers’ Jon McLaughlin to play in the major tournament.
Scotland’s squad will meet up in Spain this week for a training camp which will also see them play friendly matches against the Netherlands (Wednesday 2nd June) and Luxembourg (Sunday 6th June).
Their European Championships group campaign will begin at Hampden Park in Glasgow against Czech Republic on Monday 14th June, before facing England at Wembley Stadium on Friday 18th June. Their final group match will see the face Croatia at Hampden Park on Tuesday 22nd June.
Marshall’s penalty save from Aleksandar Mitrovic of Serbia secured qualification back in November, following a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes, and that moment alone made him a national hero.
Although he is not one to bask in the limelight, the goalkeeper says to help his country reach a major tournament was a moment to savour.
Speaking to the BBC’s Football Focus programme, Marshall said: “I had the penalty save sent to me quite a lot but as footballers you have to move on, although it was a big moment and a big night.
“I saw a lot of the social media stuff talking about having a statue of me built and other stuff that I can’t repeat, but there were a lot of funny things going about!
“There was a real outpouring of emotion that night, everyone enjoyed it so much, and it gives us something to look forward to this summer, which is the most important thing.”
He added: “It meant so much to me. It has been so long since Scotland were at a major tournament.”
Scotland’s last European Championships came back in England in 1996, while their involvement at the FIFA World Cup in France two years later was their last at a tournament.
Marshall watched Scotland in 1996 and 1998 as a young boy and the significance of achieving qualification and what it means for the country is not lost on him.
He said: “I remember John Collins’ penalty, which he scored, against Brazil in 1998. I am probably the only player in the squad old enough to have seen it, as well as the players turning up for that game wearing their kilts.
“It is a big moment in terms of youngsters being able to experience this at home and a generation of people in Scotland have missed out really.
“Hopefully, we can create some good memories in June.”
