Thanks for joining me for this evening's events. A thoroughly captivating 2-3 win for Germany, who march on again. I have been Neil Leverett @the91stneil. Until the next time. Good evening.
There really is no way to accurately describe the majesty and sheer brilliance of Thomas Muller. The Bayern forward again hit two, setting up Ilkay Gundogan for the winner also. The German was simply too hot to handle for Gordon Strachan's side. Germany are sitting pretty at the top of Group D, with Scotland scrambling...
The result may perhaps flatter Scotland slightly, but the host's passion and effort tried to carry them through. Again thought the Scots fell short.
That result could yet affect The Republic's chances of qualifying. If Poland lose to Scotland, the Irish could still finish in the top two, albeit themselves having to entertain Germany in Dublin. All to play for?
The Republic of Ireland have beaten Georgia 1-0 thanks to a goal from Jon Walters, which sees them four points ahead of Scotland, with two games remaining. Poland won 8-1 versus Gibraltar, who sit two points ahead of Ireland and who travel to Hampden next month. It's must win versus Poland.
Scotland's second defeat in succession leaves their qualification for Euro 2016 hanging by the flimsiest of threads...
A thrilling evening at Hampden comes to a close. After a stirling (?) first 45 minutes, in large part, the Scots ran out of juice in the second period and the World Champions saw off their opponents.
FULL TIME: Scotland 2-3 Germany
corner....is headed clear by Boateng...and that is it...
90+2' Matt Ritchie opens up the German midfield and slips a ball wide to Alan Hutton, whose chipped is headed away
Substitution: Mesut Ozil for Kristophe Kramer
one final Hampden roar!!
STOPPAGE TIME: 2 minutes
89' not long left for Scotland
88' Scotland freekick...comes to nothing
Substitution: Mario Gotze for Andre Schurrle
SAVE! David Marshall keeps out another drive, this time from Gundogan, looking for his second.
81' Ikechi Anya is giving Emre Can a real test on the left wing. If the hosts are to level, it could be front this position. nine minutes to go
Bournemouth and Derby County to rescue the Scots?
Substitution: James Forrest for Matt Ritchie
Substitution: Scott Brown for Chris Martin
straight at the wall...
77' Freekick to Scotland, 22 yards out...Charlie Mulgrew
74' Anya racing after an errant ball, versus Jerome Boateng. Boateng just about wins and shepherds the ball back to goalkeeper Neuer. Chris Martin is poised to enter the fray.
70' Mesut Ozil just looks effortless in a Germany shirt. the need for incisiveness is less for his national side, which might explain why he takes so much flak in the Premier League. Ozil, Gotze and Hector again combine to no avail
68' as we approach the final twenty minutes, the visitors are seeing more of the ball in an advanced role. Still, the threat exists for the counter attack with Anya and Forrest for Scotland also..
CHANCE! Hutton is up the pitch once more and after creating the opening, carries his run to receive the ball in the German box, dashing inwards and off-balance fires into the side-netting. oof
64' Germany are ramping it up..Scotland need to hang in there...
61' SAVE! Thomas Muller is again chief tormentor and his interplay on the right finds Gotze, who cannot quite find enough space, but his layoff finds Bastian Schweinsteiger, who leathers a shot at David Marshall, who blocks away.
Substitution: Ikechi Anya for Shaun Maloney: soon after James Morrison is booked, Maloney repeats and is then hooked by Gordon Strachan. Anya, who scored in Dortmund a year to the day, is on...
58' Ikechi Anya is stripped....
56' Is five goals enough for you lot? @the91stneil for your thoughts
Germany are infront for the third time. Some lovely work by Thomas Muller, tricking and rolling the ball around before cutting the ball back into the middle for the arriving Ilkay Gundogan to slot in off David Marshall's left post. Normal service resumed?
YELLOW CARD: James Morrison.
YELLOW CARD: Shaun Maloney
GOAL! Scotland 2-3 Germany Ilkay Gundogan
52' Again the channels provide Scotland with their best threat. Alan Hutton gets free on the right, but his delivery toward Steven Fletcher is poor and overhit. Easy for Neuer.
50' Mario Gotze once again has the ball in the net, only for the assistant linesman to rule it out. Gotze is prowling...
47' The Germans keen to make that 80 percent by the look of it. The visitors have it on the deck and purring like a kitten...
KICK OFF: We are under way again...
Germany had 78 percent possession in the first half.
one tenth of the law? Scotland would have chopped their arm off to be level at half time...
so what can we expect after 45 minutes of rollercoaster football? a cagey Scotland? or do they go for broke in the knowledge that sitting back will be largely forlorn....
I'm off to place my hands in a warm water... and have a wee dram. see you in 10...
no stoppage time and we are half way through a pulsating game at Hampden Park. The Hampden Park roar is alive and we have another classic in the Scottish capital.
HALF TIME: Scotland 2-2 Germany
An extraordinary first half continues. from the corner, the ball is cleared and drops to the feet of Crystal Palace's James McArthur who chip floats a drive at the German goal and Neuer cannot keep the midfielder's effort out.... OH MY!
GOAL! Scotland 2-2 Germany James McArthur
42' nice interplay between Mulgrew and Maloney....gets a corner....
40' Hector and Gotze have a magnificent understanding on the left. the two combine wonderfully well again. Lets be honest. not understanding and Germany do not go hand in hand....
39' Gotze has the ball in the net. Offside
35' we are not lacking action here. fantastic atmosphere now
The world champs are back in front. Hector once again causes problems as his lay off find Gotze, who runs into the box and slips a ball wide to Can. Can's shot is fired goalwards and saved by Marshall, but that man Thomas Muller picks up the scraps and nods in off the far post.
GOAL! Scotland 1-2 Germany Thomas Muller
The Germans are out in force in the Scottish capital:
31' Germany try an immediate response, as Hector runs and crosses toward Muller, but Russell Martin is on hand to head away...we are rolling in Glasgee
30' that one is an own goal...
An explosion of sound inside Hampden! Shaun Maloney's freekick is whipped into the box, saved by Manuel Neuer at his feet, but the balls ricochets out, hits Mats Hummels and bounces back into the net! THE HAMPDEN ROAR!
GOAL! Scotland 1-1 Germany Mats Hummels OG
26' Free kick to Scotland, on the left. chances.
24' Steven Fletcher is getting increasingly isolated up top, as the Scots attacking three are having to work to nullify Germany's threat. That may not be set to change anytime soon
21' looking again, that may go down as Martin's unfortunate own goal. Scotland up against it.
It took just 18 minutes for the visitors to break through. Toni Kroos' searching pass dissects the Scottish midfield, to find Thomas Muller, who bombards his way through a static defence, shoots and his effort deflects off Russell Martin, past David Marshall
GOAL! Scotland 0-1 Germany Thomas Muller
17' Scotland's best chance may be on the counter this evening but James Forrest cannot catch a loose ball..
Hector and Forrest are already having a ding-dong battle in the wide areas
13' James Forrest is having to do some double time tracking back this evening and just about manages to cut out Hector's dash into the Scotland penalty area..
12' As perhaps expected, Scotland keeping things as tight as possible. Germany probing
Gordon Strachan watches on..
8' Mesut Ozil has Germany's first shot in anger, but is blocked by his Premier League counterpart, Norwich's Russell Martin. Toni Kroos then has a wild swing the sails wide. Ozil will be keen to show what he can still do.
7' Already in the early stages the space appears to be in the wide areas, with both sets of full-backs busy like bees.
4' Celtic's Charlie Mulgrew will likely be in for a torrid night at left-back and the defender has to be sharp to cut out Liverpool's Emre Can.
3' Alan Hutton's pace down the the German left could cause Jonas Hector a few issues this evening. The Koln left back is relatively unknown on the world stage but night light this could announce his presence.
2' A few early nerves for both sides.
KICK OFF: here we go! The noise is (now) defeaning
19.45: Bjorn Kuipers is your referee. The same as back in that famous Celtic win...we dont believe in omens. BUT COME ON!!
19.44: and here comes Sir Alex....
19.43: Scott Brown looks a vision of focus. Yet also utter petrification. Scott?
19.42: 'Deutschland Deutschland uber alles.....and now Flower of Scotland...
hmmm, it has to be said that the Georgia defeat has subdued the Tartan Army somewhat...
So can Scotland bounce back versus the World Champions? we are about to find out.
19.39: The players congregate in the tunnel..
19.34: Scotland's X factor may be found on the bench. Ikechi Anya was almost brought to tears as he scored in the reverse fixture in Dortmund back a year ago, and the Watford forward's pace might cause Germany problems in the latter stages of the game.
Jogi Lowe: The personification of cool:
19.30: the most obvious would be in 2012, with Hampden as the home of Celtic, as The Hoops beat the mighty Lionel Messi and Barcelona, via the majesty of Charlton Athletic's Tony Watt.
From Hampden to The Valley for the Scot. That's the way of the world...
19.28: So what can we look for in terms of Hampden Park classics?
19.24: For the hosts, a defeat leaves their qualification for next summer in France, out of their hands. Unfortunately, a defeat, on paper is likely.
19.21: Mario Gotze has been largely a bit player for Bayern Munich, but under Lowe, Gotze has thrived in a strikers role, scoring twice more against Poland on Friday night. Once more, the Germany coach is not shy in moving his charges around the park, if it suits.
19.19: Elsewhere, Northern Ireland can qualify for their first major tournament since 1996. Hungary stand in their way, who are unbeaten on the road this campaign.
incidentally, I have my kilt on (quarter Scottish). I shall however, save you from the ubiquitous instagram posts...
19.13: The game will be surely won and lost in the centre of the park. Celtic and Crystal Palace must combine to thwart the world champions. Brown and McArthur will have their work cut-out.
19.11: The inclusion of Gundogan is likely to cause Scotland headaches. The Turkish-born German has been linked with a move away for Dortmund, but so far has been unmoved. Tonight he is at the head of a three man midfield pivot.
19.10: Hampden Park is slowly beginning to fill..
Joachim Lowe has opted to reinforce the German's central play with Dortmund's Gundogan, with Bayer Leverkusen wing man Bellarabi, dropping out. Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze are likely to rotate at the head of the line.
So Gordon Strachan has gone with a two man midfield with James McArthur and Scott Brown. will that be enough to keep the likes of Ozil, Muller and Gotze on a leash?
subs: Mustafi, Rudy, Ginter, Schurrle, Podolski, Zieler, Volland, Bellarabi, Kramer, ter Stegen, Kruse
GERMANY: Neuer, Can, Boateng, Hummels, Hector; Schweinsteiger, Kroos; Muller, Gundogan, Ozil; Gotze
subs: Anya, Gordon, Ritchie, Griffiths, Whittaker, Naismith, Russell, Fletcher, Greer, McGregor, Martin, Forsyth
SCOTLAND: Marshall, Hutton, Martin, Hanley, Mulgrew; McArthur, Brown; Maloney, Morrison, Forrest; Fletcher.
Germany make just the one switch, with Ilkay Gundogan in for Karim Bellarabi
TEAM NEWS: Scotland make three changes, with Grant Hanley, James Forrest and James McArthur coming in for Andy Robertson, Steven Naismith and Ikechi Anya.
The German boys are out on the turf..
GOOD EVENING! welcome to the ancestral home of Scottish football, Hampden Park. Do we have a humdinger for you. Scotland. versus Germany. Team news very very shortly...
Its is sure to be a cauldron of excitement in Hampden Park come kick-off. Join us at from 6.45 for live build-up from Glasgow, with the action getting under way at 7.45. Bring your kilts and your ginger wigs. See you then.
Germany have an abundance of talent with the guile of Toni Kroos, together with the pace of Karim Bellarabi on the right. However perhaps a opening may come through the full-back areas, with Liverpool's Emre Can and Koln's Jonas Hector, both relatively inexperienced.
How might Scotland counteract the threat of Mesut Ozil, Thomas Muller, Mario Gotze und aber? Bournemouth's Matt Ritchie could provide the Scots with a extra dimension on the wing, opposite Anya and James McArthur could provide an extra body in midfield.
Joachim Lowe similarly has few injury issues, with only Marco Reus absent with a toe injury sustained for Borussia Dortmund in the final game before the international break. The German coach may elect to name the same eleven that started in Frankfurt.
Scotland will have a full squad to pick from versus Germany, however Gordon Strachan has said he will make changes to the side that lost to Georgia. Asked on whether he would shake things up, he replied: "Yes. The work-rate with this squad is unquestionable. These guys play for Scotland for nothing. You've got to admire what they do because international football is getting a lot harder than when I played."
Nevertheless, with Germany now having dropped just one point from their last five group games, Scotland have a mighty task if they are to garner even a draw this evening.
Even Scotland, during their 2-1 defeat to Germany in Dortmund, put on a spirited second half display and were perhaps unfortunate to leave Signal Iduna Park empty-handed. Watford's Ikechi Anya threatened to throw the hosts early group form into disarray.
Indeed, their Group D campaign begun with the newly-crowned World Cup winners out-of-sorts, winning only four points from a possible nine, with Ireland holding them to superb point, eleven months ago.
Germany have also succumbed to the Jurgen Klinsmann's US national side in a friendly in Cologne, only three months ago and drew 2-2 with Australia in March.
Scotland will be huge outsiders for this game, but a furvent Hampden crowd can be the 12th man for the home side. Not only that, but Germany aren't perhaps as imperious as people will have you believe.
Die Mannschaft moved to the top of the tree with 3-1 victory over neighbours Poland, in Frankfurt on Friday. Goals from Thomas Muller and brace from Mario Gotze, led Joachim Lowe's side to a hard-fought victory - them also reversing a loss versus their opponents, earlier in qualifying - and saw the Germans leapfrog their visitors into top spot.
For Germany, a win in Glasgow would solidify their position at the top of Group D and depending on results elsewhere, could guarantee qualification for Euro 2016, with two games to play.
By 21:30 this evening, Martin O'Neill's men could sit four points ahead of their celtic neighbours, with The Poles a further two points ahead and with only third spot qualifiying for two-legged playoff in November, Strachan's side is in huge peril of missing out on a major tournament once again, as their British counterparts England became the first side to qualify for the Euros, with Wales and Northern Ireland all set for qualification berths.
The result leaves the Scots sweating over qualification for next summer's events in France. Also as Scotland entertain Germany, over in Dublin, the Republic of Ireland welcome the tartan conquerors Georgia to the Aviva Stadium, whilst Poland host group minnows Gibraltar, in Warsaw.
Scotland's trip to Eastern Europe has been lambasted as 'wretched' and 'impotent' with a non-existent attack on show, as the visitors drew a blank and the hosts exacted revenge for their away, defeat last October.
Gordon Strachan's Scotland come into this game licking their wounds, after a 0-1 defeat in Georgia last Friday, with Valeri Kazaishvili's 37th minute goal being the winner in Tbilisi.
The Scottish capital is sure to be at its' raucous best as the Tartan Army flood into the home of Scottish football, as Scotland host the current World Champions in front of a capacity crowd of 52,000.
Good evening and welcome to VAVEL's coverage of tonight's crucial European Championship Group D Qualifier, between Scotland and Germany in Glasgow. I am your esteemed host, Neil Leverett and I shall be your guide for tonight's events at Hampden Park.