THE Nations League has been good to Scotland and Steve Clarke's men can secure top spot in their group for the second campaign in a row if they beat Israel in Netanya.
The feelgood factor the nation has been riding since qualifying for Euro 2020 would not have been possible had the Scots not qualified for the play-offs due to their Nations League success.
And with a potential play-off spot for the 2022 World Cup up for grabs, Clarke and his players will understand the significance of this fixture.
They should have wrapped the group up last time out in Slovakia but despite dominating the game Scotland fell to a 1-0 defeat, meaning a victory is needed in Israel to guarantee top spot.
The Israelis also have plenty to play for as they look for the win that would save them from relegation to the lower tier of the Nations League next time out.
Only penalties separated these sides in the Euro play-off semi-final so the task in front of Clarke's players is far from simple as they look to maintain the positivity around the national team.
How the bookies view it
This is a tough one to call and it's reflected in the odds with Israel 7/4 at Unibet and the Scots a best 25/14 with VBet. Given their last two meetings have ended in draws, the best option might be the stalemate at 23/10 with 888Sport.
Recent head to head
These teams must be sick of the sight of each other, having met four times in the last two years. In the last Nations League campaign, the Israelis won 2-1 on home soil (below) before losing 3-2 in an epic Hampden clash as Scotland won the group.
The matches this season have been much tighter, with a 1-1 Nations League draw in Glasgow followed by that 0-0 nailbiter before the Scots triumphed on penalties in the Euro play-off semi-final.
Team news
Lyndon Dykes returns from suspension from that Scots and that's great news for Clarke given Oli McBurnie failed to impress up front in the loss to Slovakia. Captain Andy Robertson is a doubt with a tight hamstring but Kieran Tierney was Scotland's best player against the Slovaks when he deputised as left wing-back.
Midfielder Stuart Armstrong is suspended after his booking in Slovakia while Celtic defender Hatem Abd Elhamed is banned for the Israelis due to his red card in the defeat to the Czech Republic on Sunday.
Players to watch
Dykes have been a revelation for Scotland and the QPR striker delivered when I tipped him for a Nations League goal on the road against the Czechs. He is 11/4 with Paddy Power for anytime scorer here and that looks decent value.
It's hard to look past Eran Zahavi for an Israel goal given he has netted five times in this Nations League campaign, including a strike against the Scots at Hampden. The PSV forward is 19/10 with Unibet to net again here.
Anything else catch the eye?
Clarke continues to run a tight ship and betting against goals paid off for me in Slovakia when two of my predictions came up. Under 2.5 goals delivered at 4/5 with McBookie that night so I'm on a repeat here at the same odds with them.
I've tipped a half-time draw in Scotland's last two matches, with it landing against Serbia but failing to come up in Slovakia. I'm going to stick with it for this one and it pays 11/10 with Bet365.
The Israelis won 10 corners in their last game against the Czechs and six when they last hosted Scotland. So I like the look of the 19/20 on offer at William Hill for them to win over one corner in each half.
This UEFA Nations League match between Israel and Scotland will be played on Nov 18, 2020 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Israel vs Scotland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
In December 2020 we sadly 
