Tartan Army take over Cologne as Swiss and Scots mingle pre-match

The Tartan Army have taken over the huge area outside Cologne's biggest train station with Scots and Swiss mingling together ahead of tonight's crunch Group A clash.

Around 40,000 hopeful Scotland fans descended onto the city before the match against Switzerland this evening. Those without tickets are expected to watch from the city's fan zone near the Alter Markt square, where fans started gathering this morning.

Joined by bagpipers at the city's famous cathedral, families have been posing for pictures, holding up saltires and singing Scotland songs. Neil Cameron, 61, who works in electrical business and is from Glasgow, was posing for pictures near the cathedral with his son Ryan, 31, a consultant who now lives in London.

Neil said: "We've just been wandering around the city going up and down the canal seeing all the sights. We've been meeting up with Scotland fans and chatting to Swiss too. It's been a nice vibe.

"It's a brilliant atmosphere. We just need to turn up and give it a good go. That's all we can ask for from Scotland. If we get a draw tonight and take it to the last game I'll be happy."

Ryan added: "We're probably going to watch it from the fan zone. We were looking at tickets online but they were 450 Euro which seems a lot. We'll see how we feel after a few beers. Anything better than 5-1 will be good. Hopefully 1-1."

Little Eilish Meaney, nine, from Edinburgh, has been enjoying our trip to Germany and is hopeful we can get a result tonight. The youngster said: "I've been to LegoLand and I've also been to the Germany game too on Friday.

"It was a good experience but the football was really bad. We have tickets for the game tonight. I'm really looking forward to it. It's going to be 2-1 to Scotland. McGinn and Scotland. We just need to score some goals. Come on Scotland!"

Tuesday's rain cleared over night and the area outside the station was busy with Scots drinking beers and playing football in the sunshine. For those with tickets a huge march has also been planned to the stadium a couple of hours before kick off.

Craig Hilsmith, a 40-year-old lawyer from Edinburgh, said: "We've been accosted by tourists who want to get pictures with us. We could have made a fortune if we had charged for pictures.

"We are just going to get a couple of beers then head for the march. We've got tickets. We just want to see an improvement from the boys. I think we will be up for it. I think they will respond. So hopefully we can put in a good performance... a few shots on target would be a start!"

Craig's brother Mark added: "We just want to see a bit of fight from the boys tonight, that's all we want really. We need a result. I'm going to be positive. It will be 2-1 Scotland. McGinn double."

Caroline Brogan, a nurse from Hamilton, travelled through from Dusseldorf with her family. The 59-year-old said: "We travelled up from Dusseldorf then headed into the cathedral to say a few prayers for tonight. We're just going to enjoy the city before the match later. My husband and son have tickets, we are relegated to the fan zone.

"My niece Vivienne here is from Leverkusen and she is showing us around. She is German but supports Scotland. We're going to win 2-1, Callum McGregor to score."

Sitting near the chaos was Scott Alison, who has travelled across from Adelaide to link up with his dad John, 78, from Kilmarnock. As they enjoyed a beer near the station, the 49-year-old police officer said: "I've travelled from south Australia to watch Scotland and meet my father.

"It was 14 hours from Australia to Doha then another seven hours onto Frankfurt. It was a full day travelling yesterday then straight into the party today. I've not seen my dad for a year so it's quite special. Especially being here with the Scotland fans at a major tournament.

"We're going to the game tonight. We are going to have to play a lot better than Friday. Scoring goals is our problem. I think we can win but we will draw."

Sat next to the pair was Markus Allemann and Franz Maag from Zurich in Switzerland. They posed for pictures with the Scots before Markus said: "The Scottish people are lovely. I think it will be a draw tonight. 2-2."

The Alter Markt area and the many bars situated around it are also packed with Scots who are expected to keep ensuring their voices are heard in the build up to the game.

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