A Libor Sionko brace helped Euro 2008-bound Czech Republic beat Scotland 3-1 in Prague.
Home side hit three past Gordon, while Clarkson nets for Scots
Czech Republic limbered up for their tilt at Euro 2008 with a comprehensive 3-1 victory over Scotland in Prague.
After a goalless first half, the game exploded into life in the 60th minute when former Rangers player Libor Sionko put the home side ahead.
Michael Kadlec then doubled the lead in the 84th minute, but debutant David Clarkson gave Scotland some hope by pulling back a goal one minute later.
But Sionko put the issue beyond doubt with his second on 90 minutes.
This was Scotland boss George Burley's first away game and he always knew it would be a tough test against a country ranked sixth in the world and heading for Austria and Switzerland this summer.
Like Burley's debut against Croatia in March, the build-up to this match had been overshadowed by withdrawals, with six pulling out of the squad this time around.
Pressure
Burley handed a debut to West Brom midfielder James Morrison, while Motherwell pair Clarkson and Ross McCormack and Hearts defender Christophe Berra also earned first caps as second-half substitutes.
The home side could have opened the scoring early on when Rudi Skacel's cut-back found Sionko in front of goal, but the ball was cleared before he could pull the trigger and Jan Koller fired over.
A Gary Caldwell foul on Koller 30 yards out provided the Czechs with another opportunity to put Scotland under pressure but Tomas Galasek's free-kick was comfortably held by Gordon.
The Scots managed a few ventures forward themselves but failed to put their hosts under too much pressure in the opening spell.
Scotland then failed in their attempts to win a penalty when Barry Robson claimed he was pushed by Marek Jankulovski, but Dutch referee Eric Braamhaar ignored the pleas.
The Czechs made five changes at half-time and one of the substitutes, David Jarolim, almost broke the deadlock soon after the restart.
Mercy
Jan Polak raced past the static Gary Naysmith before squaring to Jarolim at the back post with the gaping net at his mercy, but a last-gasp block from Paul Hartley kept the scoreline level.
Scotland's best chance followed when Miller slipped a pass through to Morrison who looked set to mark his debut with a goal, but the shot cannoned off the body of Petr Cech.
However, the Czechs took the lead with an hour gone as Sionko gathered Zdenek Pospech's pass on his chest before firing home from just a few yards out.
The home nation then netted again with 84 minutes on the clock when Kadlec, once linked with a move to Celtic, rifled low into the net before Scotland pulled a goal back a minute later.
Naysmith was the provider and Clarkson celebrated his first international goal when he deftly switched from his right to his left foot and fired home past Cech.
But it was all in vain as Sionko claimed his second of the night late on to seal the win for the home side.
| Czech Republic |
Team Statistics |
Scotland |
| 3 |
Goals |
1 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 9 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 5 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 8 |
Blocked Shots |
0 |
| 8 |
Corners |
4 |
| 11 |
Fouls |
11 |
| 0 |
Offsides |
1 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
0 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 88.9 |
Passing Success |
85 |
| 16 |
Tackles |
23 |
| 68.8 |
Tackles Success |
52.2 |
| 52.7 |
Possession |
47.3 |
| 55.5 |
Territorial Advantage |
44.5 |
|
