article_snippet: Shaun Maloney has branded Scotland’s crunch end-of-season clash with Ireland as ‘colossal’ — and vowed that Gordon Strachan’s men are capable of leaving Dublin with three more crucial points on the road to Euro 2016.
article_snippet: The goalscoring hero when the two nations met last November at Parkhead, Shaun Maloney believes the pressure will be off the scale when the Celtic nations collide for the return at the Aviva Stadium on June 13.
article_snippet: And Shaun Maloney insists Strachan’s side can grab the win that would all but end Ireland’s hopes of reaching France next year if they reprise they form against the Irish four months .
article_snippet: ‘The Ireland game in June is going to be absolutely colossal,’ said Maloney, who now plays with Chicago Fire in America’s Major League Soccer.
article_snippet: Maloney insists Scotland’s ability to handle the intense pressure ahead of that first Ireland match in Glasgow and to emerge with a fine win was a key moment in the development of the team under Strachan.
article_snippet: Maloney was the goalscoring hero when the two nations met November at Parkhead .
article_snippet: And Maloney warned it will be the turn of the Irish in June to see if they can handle the heat of what is now a must-win match for Martin O’Neill’s side.
article_snippet: ‘The pressure when we played Ireland at Celtic Park was huge,’ said Maloney, whose two goals in Scotland’s 6-1 win over Gibraltar on Sunday leaves him as the highest scorer in Strachan’s squad with a total of six.
article_snippet: It was a pressure for a match (against Ireland) that I hadn’t felt for a long time.
article_snippet: ‘The pressure will now be magnified for the Irish being at home and it’s a brilliant game to be involved in.