Scotland have lost midfield duo Kirsty Maclean and Chelsea Cornet to injury for their opening World Cup qualifiers against Luxembourg. Liverpool's Maclean, who already has 14 caps, would have been a likely starter, while Birmingham City's Cornet, 27, would have been hoping to make her fourth Scotland appearance. Maclean, 20, missed Liverpool's FA Cup win over Everton on Sunday, while Cornet was an unused substitute for Birmingham the previous day as they thrashed Chatham Town. Scotland will be strong favourites to start their World Cup campaign with two victories against a side ranked 80 places below them. The two sides are meeting for the first time, with Belgium and Israel the other sides in European qualification Group H.

Source: BBC February 23, 2026 14:14 UTC