Betting Austria vs North Macedonia: Best Tips, Latest Odds, Preview and Predictions
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| Austria vs North Macedonia Odds & Prediction – Euro 2020 Group C June 13 |
Austria meets North Macedonia at Arena Nationala in Bucharest at Euro 2020 on Sunday with both teams looking for a first-ever win at the tournament stage of the competition.
Along with Finland, North Macedonia are one of two first-team participants in Euro 2020 this year, after splendidly qualifying through the playoff.
Key Facts
- North Macedonians kick off at Euro for the first time at 12pm ET on Sunday
- Austria beat these opponents home and away in qualifying ties
- See all odds and best bets for Austria vs North Macedonia Euro 2020 Group C
- North Macedonia’s last defeat at home came way back in June 2019, though it was against Austria.
- Goran Pandev, aged 37, is older than the country he is representing, as North Macedonia was formed in 1991, following the fall of the Soviet Union.
Latest Odds (June 13)
Significantly, ahead of the Group C meeting in Bucharest, Austria defeated these opponents twice during the qualifying competition. So the oddsmakers at FanDuel have made the Austrians favorite for a win at -140. North Macedonia is a wide outsider at +460.
The draw, furthermore, is priced at +230 with kick-off at 12pm ET at the National Arena in the Romanian capital. Certainly, the draw is the best offer here with Austria unimpressive recently and North Macedonia capable of punching above its weight.
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| Austria vs North Macedonia |
Austria won both clashes when these sides met in Euro 2020 qualifying and bet365 make them 13/20 (1.65) to open their campaign with three points and take a step towards the next stage of the competition.
However, North Macedonia claimed an incredible 2-1 win away at Germany in their last competitive outing and are 5/1 (6.0) to follow that up with another victory.
The draw is available at 13/5 (3.60) with the online bookmaker.
Betting Analysis & Pick
North Macedonia really lack the overall talent to hang with Austria, so I think the Austrians are going to cruise in this match, especially given how much they dominated North Macedonia during Euro qualifying.
Since I have Austria projected at -216 and for 1.99 goals, I am going to go for the double and take Austria -135 and their team total over 1.5 goals.
Pick: Austria -135 | Austria Team Total Over 1.5 (+105
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| Austria vs. North Macedonia Betting Odds |
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Austria vs North Macedonia Preview
Whilst North Macedonia’s stunning victory in Germany little over two months ago was certainly unexpected, the fact that they scored was somewhat less of a surprise.
Including that World Cup qualifier in March, Igor Angelovski’s men have now scored in 32 of their last 37 outings - striking against the likes of Spain and Italy as well as Germany.
In fact, they scored in both qualifying meetings between these nations and should be able to find the net once again considering Austria have managed only a single clean sheet in their most recent seven games.
Austria vs North Macedonia Tips and Predictions
North Macedonia to score is available at 4/5 (1.80) with bet365 and looks the way to go for this Euro 2020 Group C match in Romania.
Also worth considering is both teams to score at 6/5 (2.20), which offers good odds-against value as it has landed in eight of the last 11 competitive games that Angelovski’s side have played.
Team News & Tactics
Austria
Austria have a habit of consistently underperforming in big tournaments, and Franco Foda will be hoping to end that record, as he has, at his disposal, one of the most exciting teams in Euro 2020.
Led valiantly by David Alaba, Austria typically play with a flexible 4-2-3-1 with wingers pushing very high up the pitch to offer support for the attackers. Alaba and the right-sided player in Stefan Lainer should continue to operate in that role, playing almost as wingbacks.
Their offensive movements do create an imbalance in defence, especially in a back-four system. And that is where the presence of holding midfielder Florian Grillitsch could prove to be important. The Hoffenheim star is a defensive-minded midfielder who can tuck in between the two central defenders in Martin Hinteregger and Aleksandar Dragovic, creating a momentary 3-4-3 in the attack.
That said, the midfield is Austria’s biggest strength as they boast the services of work-horses like Xaver Schlager, Konrad Laimer and Marcel Sabitzer, with the latter serving as the creative lynchpin in the middle.
Given the sheer number of Bundesliga players they have at their disposal, Austria have a strong first line of press. Sasa Kalajdzic usually spearheads the attack, with additional support from creative players such as Christoph Baumgartner and Valentino Lazaro.
Even Sabitzer could join the first line of press if necessary, although he and Baumgartner should play a vital role in offering balls in behind the opposition defence, picking out runners like Lainer and Lazaro.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Schlager; Lainer, Dragovic, Hinteregger, Alaba; Grillitsch, Schlager; Lazaro, Sabitzer, Baumgartner; Kalajdzic
North Macedonia
Considering the quality of the opposition, North Macedonia head coach Igor Angelovski is expected to opt for his conservative system, with a 5-3-2 formation that usually constitutes of two wingbacks supporting both attackers and defenders depending on the situation of the game.
Ezgjan Alioski and Stefan Ristovski usually occupy these two wingback positions. Alioski is usually given more attacking freedom, as the Leeds United forward particularly useful when it comes to providing crosses from the wider areas.
However, North Macedonia are largely expected to sit deep, as Angelovski unleashes the hard-working back three of Darko Velkovski, Visar Musliu and Kire Ristevski. The additional defensive support should be provided by the right wingback Ristovski, as he has more experience of playing as a defender.
In the midfield trifecta, Angelovski is likely to go for Stefan Spirovski and Arijam Ademi, whose defensive prowess should help him get the nod ahead of Boban Nikolov, and finally, Eljif Elmas.
Elmas is the team’s creative lynchpin, while both Ademi and Spirovski are likely to operate in a conservative holding midfield role. The Napoli youngster will have the license to move forward, becoming a passing option for attackers.
Speaking of which, the North Macedonian attack will be spearheaded by none other than Goran Pandev, who will be utilised as a target man. His attacking partner Aleksandar Trajkovski will play a more technical role, looking to spark things up in the creative department.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Dimitrievski; Velkovski, Musliu, Ristevski; Ristovski, Spirovski, Ademi, Elmas, Alioski; Pandev, Trajkovski
Head to Head and History
North Macedonians initially finished third in their group before beating Kosovo and later Georgia in the play-off, with an extremely late goal from Goran Pandev, helping them secure qualification for the first time in the nation’s history.
Austria, in contrast, registered direct qualifying to the main stage after finishing second in the group. Their tally of six wins in ten matches was only bettered by Poland, who were faultless with eight wins in ten.
Die Burschen are playing only their third European Championship this year and were knocked out of the group stages in Euro 2016. They will be hoping for better fortunes this time around, though Franco Foda’s men haven’t performed very well heading into the competition.
North Macedonia, in contrast, are in an inspiring run of form, notably securing a 2-1 victory over Germany in the World Cup qualifiers. They are coming on the back of a 4-0 win over Kazakhstan in the pre-tournament friendly, giving them the ideal confidence they need ahead of their first game in the UEFA Euro 2020.
Austria won just once in the first three 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, including a 4-0 defeat to Denmark. They also failed to win their warm-up friendlies, losing 1-0 to England and drawing 0-0 with Slovakia.
These two nations are likely to battle with Ukraine to claim second place in the group . The Netherlands is the clear favorite to finish first.
And the memory of North Macedonia’s astonishing 2-1 win away against mighty Germany in a World Cup qualifying game in March will resonate as it kicks off the competition.
It was a convincing 4-1 win for Austria in North Macedonia in June 2019.
In addition, Austria were 2-1 winners at home in November 2019.
However, the Macedonians are currently in better form.
It has won three of its last four games. And it and has lost only twice in the last 10 fixtures.
The Austrians have been comparatively poor – having failed to win or even score in their most recent three matches.
Previously, Austria lost twice and drew once on both occasions when it reached the finals.
It qualified as hosts in 2008. And it progressed through the qualification tournament in 2016.
But Austria has not won a game at a major tournament since a 2-1 defeat of the USA in the group stage at the 1990 World Cup in Italy.
Meanwhile, the North Macedonians will be attending a major tournament for the first time in its 27-year history.
Austria’s preparations have been especially affected by a 4-0 thrashing by Denmark in a World Cup qualifier last March.
Since then the team has followed up with two unimpressive tune-up results this month.
They were beaten 1-0 in England before a 0-0 draw at home against Slovakia last Sunday.
