Euro 2020: Betting preview and selections for Monday's make or break games

Group C kicks off proceedings with both Ukraine against Austria and North Macedonia versus Netherlands at 5pm. Ukraine and Austria will play that fixture out in the neutral venue of Bucharest while Netherlands once again play in Amsterdam against a North Macedonian side who will be aiming for their first points of Euro 2020.

Group B involves Finland Belgium, Russia and Denmark for the last time as final positions are set to be decided. Both Finland versus Belgium and Russia against Denmark start at 8pm with the matches being played in St. Petersburg and Copenhagen respectively. This will be a shock for Russia who relied on home support for both their fixtures thus far and will have to contend with a Danish fanbase who created a wonderful atmosphere against Belgium. Finland play their second consecutive game in St. Petersburg which would have helped them in their preparation but Belgium will be confident after a dramatic second half against the Danes.

The Netherlands are already through to the last 16 which will be a relief to Frank de Boer after immense pressure before the tournament. His side certainly didn’t feel that intensity against Austria on Thursday in which Memphis Depay and Denzel Dumfries scored to confirm their safe passage through the group. It remains to be seen whether de Boer will see this as an opportunity to rest key individuals or continue with the same group of players that have done well up until now.

North Macedonia are likely to go out unless they can pull off a huge shock and put a few goals past the Dutch. Netherlands are heavy favourites at 1/3 with North Macedonia coming in at 10/1 to embarrass the Dutch in their home. If they were to do this they’d be relying on Goran Pandev to score in what will be his last ever game in professional football. The Genoa striker has vowed to hang up his boots at the age of 37 after a long and respected career mostly played in Italy. He’s at 4/1 to finish with a bang. Napoli’s Eljif Elmas has looked bright in moments and the 21-year-old is ready to step up as North Macedonia’s next great player following Pandev’s retirement and is 5/1 to score anytime. Donyell Malen was tipped as one of the breakthrough players of Euro 2020 and he was substituted on to assist Dumfries against Austria. The PSV winger is 21/20 to score in the 90 minutes with Depay and striker partner Wout Weghorst looking to add to their collection at 4/5 and 13/10 respectively.

Ukraine versus Austria will be intriguing given both countries got their expected victories over North Macedonia and a win for either side would solidify their place in the last 16. A point each could also suit but Ukraine have scored more goals than Austria which means a draw would leave the Austrians hoping they can go through as a third best-placed team.

The odds couldn’t be tighter for this game with Ukraine at 5/2 and Austria at 11/4 with the bookies favouring a draw valued at evens. Austria need to be the most proactive with Sasa Kalajdizc at 11/4 to score his first of the competition at any point during the 90 minutes. Back from suspension will be Marko Arnautovic after his confrontation with Alioski in Austria’s win over North Macedonia. Michael Gregoritsch who did score in that match is at 15/4 to refind the goalscoring touch that escaped him against Netherlands.

Andriy Yarmolenko has shaken off a frustrating season at West Ham where he didn’t score any league goals to bagging two in two games for his country. He’s 15/4 to score anytime and will be confident about continuing his run against an Austria side who have conceded three times in two games. Roman Yaramchuk is 5/2 in the same market and has hit the ground running and has the same goals to games ratio as Yarmolenko in this tournament. One of these two key men in the Ukrainian team should be on penalty duties after Malinovskyi’s miss against North Macedonia increasing their chances of scoring.

Belgium are in the last 16 but the importance of Kevin De Bruyne to their country’s chances of winning the Euros couldn’t be more obvious after his second half performance against Denmark. The Danes pressed and shut down a Belgian side in the first 45 minutes and had to rely on a drastic substitution from Roberto Martinez to get De Bruyne on the pitch immediately after. His link-up with Romelu Lukaku and Thorgan Hazard for the Belgians’ equaliser and his shot from the edge of the box to score had all the hallmarks of a world-class performer.

Finland will be disappointed not to take anything off a Russian side who looked completely off the pace in the opening game. Aleksei Miranchuk caressed the ball brilliantly past Lukas Hradecky to seal a 1-0 win which put them right back in the tournament. The Finns still have three points and a resilient draw against the Belgians could see them through to the round of 16. If Martinez decides to continue to rest De Bruyne and Eden Hazard, then this target will be much more attainable.

Belgium are 3/10 to reach the nine points Martinez would have set out for and Finland are at 10/1 to achieve the unlikely and find a way past a clutch of elite players. Romelu Lukaku is 8/11 if he plays to score anytime with Hazard and De Bruyne both at 7/4. Lukaku will be aiming for the Golden Boot which is often decided by a brace or more in games against the smaller sides at the group stages. Finland will be praying Teemu Pukki has gained that extra match sharpness after his 151 minutes over two games and is 11/4 to get the goal he richly deserves after his 10 in qualifying. Strike partner Joel Pohjanpalo is 11/2 and was so close to doubling his tally for the tournament for Finland only to have his header ruled out for offside against Russia.

Denmark started ferociously against Belgium and ran out of steam towards the end of the game. With their goal difference of minus two however, it isn’t unthinkable that they manage to still make the knockout stages. Stanislav Cherchesov will be relieved to see his Russian side recapture some of the form that took them to the World Cup quarter-finals three years ago after a 1-0 win in St. Petersburg. Their victory against Finland means they are in a good position to find a way to the last 16 for the first time since 2008. Playing in Copenhagen might have an impact as the partisan crowd they had in their last two games certainly helped their cause. A draw should be enough for at least a third placed finish no matter what happens in Finland vs Belgium but their poor goal difference could be a factor.

Denmark are comfortably favourites for this at 4/6 with Russia at 4/1 if they want to give themselves complete control. A draw at 29/10 doesn’t particularly suit either side. Artem Dzyuba is still without a goal and is 8/5 to score anytime. His team mate Miranchuk did produce one of the strikes of the tournament and is 5/1 to produce a similar piece of magic. Monaco’s Alexsandr Golovin was much more involved against Finland and is 9/2 in the same market. For Denmark, Mikkel Damsgaard showed why he’s being linked with clubs around Europe in their loss to Belgium. The 20-year-old who plays for Bologna came to life against Belgium in that impressive first half and is 11/4 if he keeps his place. Yussuf Poulsen will also be aiming to add to his well taken finish in the second minute and is 12/5 to score anytime.

Odds and Euros tips via bettingexpert.com.