SCOTLAND are heading for a double-dose of Paradise – and national team boss, Gordon Strachan, couldn’t be happier.

With Hampden still set to be out of commission following its conversion for the Commonwealth Games, the former Celtic manager will bring his players to Parkhead for the Euro 2016 qualifier against the Republic of
Ireland on Friday, November 14 – as was revealed in SportTimes two months ago.
And, four days later, the Scots will be back at Celtic Park to face England in a friendly match.
The matches are certain to be sell outs, and the clamour for the 60,000 tickets has already begun.
The SFA will begin sales at noon on Wednesday, and are already bracing themselves for a massive demand.
The England game will also be part of a six-game ‘season ticket’ they are launching for the Euro 2016 campaign.
The match against Roy Hodgson’s England – still licking their wounds after a disappointing showing at the World Cup finals – has been in the pipeline since Scotland faced their old foes at Wembley last August, going down 3-2 in a thriller.
Strachan is eager to avenge that defeat and said: “Like our supporters, I was really heartened by the performance against England at Wembley and believe we had a great opportunity to record a win we could all have talked about for years.
“Now we have that chance again, and I’m sure the players and the fans will be even more determined to take it.
“The atmosphere at Wembley was incredible, and I am sure with Celtic Park filled with Scotland supporters it is a game the whole country will look forward to.”
It will be the first visit England – Fraser Forster et al – have made over the border since they won a Euro-play off 2-0 in 1999, and the hope is that the fixture can be resurrected regularly.
The Euro Group D qualifier against the Republic will attract every bit as much interest from the Tartan Army, enhanced by the fact the Irish are now managed by ex-Hoops boss Martin O’Neill.
Some leading figures within the SFA wanted this crunch tie to be played at Ibrox – as the opening home fixture against Georgia on October 11 will be  – fearing the O’Neill ‘homecoming’ factor would give the Irish some kind of advantage.
With Celtic having strong historical links with Ireland, it was also suggested their fans might feel these were familiar surroundings, reducing the home advantage of the Scots.
But Strachan – who followed O’Neill into the Parkhead hot seat in 2005 – is adamant they should not run scared.
The choice of stadium will also allow more fans to attend and the configuration of the ground means the away support will receive a smaller percentage of tickets.