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Euro 2020 Qualifying Headlines
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Second favourites and top scorers Belgium won 10 out of 10 in qualifying for Euro 2020.
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Italy was the only other team to win all their qualifying games.
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2016 beaten finalists France drew and lost to Turkey in qualifying.
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Euro 2020 bookmaker favourites England thrashed the Czech Republic at Wembley and then lost in Prague.
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The Dutch and the Germans shared 11 goals in their two qualifying games and both won away from home.
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Spain winners in 2008 and 2012 could only draw in their Scandinavian qualifying away games against Norway and Sweden.
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Portugal stuttered against Ukraine only managing to pick up 1 point in two games.
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Croatia topped a tight qualifying group just ahead of Wales, Slovakia, and Hungary.
Euro 2020 Outright Winner Betting
Qualifying Matches Against Main Rivals
In qualifying countries played the best team in the group home and away.
We took a look at these crucial games knowing that both countries would be playing at full strength.
These matches may be more of a guide to how they may perform at Euro 2020 as opposed to when they took on the whipping boys of the group.
Belgium and Italy were the only two teams to win both their matches against their main rivals.
Scotland, Slovakia, and North Macedonia lost both their games against the best team in the group.
All other countries either lost or drew at least one of their main games.
These qualifying results indicate we could be in for a tournament of surprises.
If you are interested in Euro 2020 tips please check out the OLBG Football Tipping Competition.
To place a bet on a match or the tournament please check out the OLBG Bookmaker and Betting Pages.
Group A
These are the 4 teams in Group A.
You can see their record in qualifying + the key matches they played against their main rivals + the bookmaker odds for the group
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| Italy
|
Played 10 W10
|
| Switzerland
|
Played 8 W5 D2 L1
|
| Turkey
|
Played 10 W7 D2 L1
|
| Wales | Played 8 W4 D2 L2 |
Italy beat second-place Finland home and away and completed a perfect qualifying stage. Only Belgium could match the Italians in qualifying.
Switzerland threw away a 3 goal lead in their home game against Denmark, the Danes scored in the 84th, 88th, and 93rd minute to snatch a point.
In the game, in Copenhagen, the Swiss let it slip again with the Danes scoring in the 84th minute.
Turkey as you can see above should not be underestimated after beating and drawing against the French.
The Turks only conceded 3 goals in 10 qualifying games.
Wales made it to Euro 2020 despite being the lowest scoring of the automatic qualifiers, they netted just 10 times in 8 games.
| County | Key Match 1 | Key Match 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Italy | Italy 2 v Finland 0 | Finland 1 v Italy 2 |
| Switzerland | Switzerland 3 v Denmark 3 | Denmark 1 v Switzeralnd 0 |
| Turkey | Turkey 2 v France 0 | France 1 v Turkey 1 |
| Wales | Croatia 2 v Wales 1 | Wales 1 v Croatia 1 |
Group B
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| Belgium | Played 10 W10 |
| Denmark | Played 8 W4 D4 |
| Finland | Played 10 W6 L4 |
| Russia | Played 10 W8 L2 |
100% record for Belgium if they can carry on with this form then they will be hard to beat. The Belgians toughest game on paper was a trip to St Petersburg in November, however, they were 3 up at HT thanks to a hat trick by the Hazard brothers.
Denmark had a habit of starting slowly, they are much more of a second-half team it seems, no defeats are a good sign but 4 draws.
Finland will be chuffed in qualifying they beat Bosnia and Greece at home and qualified ahead of those countries who slipped up in crucial games.
Apart from when they lined up against Belgium, Russia breezed through qualification. They won their other 8 games. Their best results were home and away victories over Scotland.
| Country | Key Match 1 | Key Match 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | Belgium 3 v Russia 1 | Russia 1 v Belgium 4 |
| Denmark | Switzerland 3 v Denmark 3 | Denmark 1 v Switzerland 0 |
| Finland | Italy 2 v Finland 0 | Finland 1 v Italy 2 |
| Russia | Belgium 3 v Russia1 | Russia 1 v Belgium 4 |
Group C
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| Austria | Played 10 W6 D1 L3 |
| Netherlands | Played 8 W6 D1 L1 |
| North Macedonia | Played 10 W4 D2 L4 |
| Ukraine | Played 8 W6 D2 |
Austria had 3 defeats in qualifying including away to Latvia who lost their other 9 games. The Austrians home form saw them through 6 points behind Poland.
Their key games against Poland saw them pick up only 1 point
The Netherlands beat Germany away and lost to them at home. A 0-0 in Northern Ireland wasn't great but apart from that, it was plain sailing for the dutch.
North Macedonia should be applauded for making the Euros, they beat Georgia in the playoffs after a goal by 37-year-old Goran Pandev.
They were not thrashed in their games against Poland
A recent victory over Germany in Duisberg shows they could shake this group up.
Ukraine topped their qualifying group over Portugal and Serbia, which included 2 wins and 2 draws against their main rivals. They also only conceded 4 goals.
| Country | Key Match 1 | Key Match 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Austria | Austria 0 v Poland 1 | Poland 0 v Austria 0 |
| Netherlands | Netherlands 2 v Germany 3 | Germany 2 v Netherlands 4 |
| North Macedonia | North Macedonia 0 v Poland 1 | Poland 2 v North Macedonia 0 |
| Ukraine | Portugal 0 v Ukraine 0 | Ukraine 2 V Portugal 1 |
Group D
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| Croatia | Played 8 W5 D2 L1 |
| Czech Republic | Played 8 W5 D3 |
| England | Played 8 W7 L1 |
| Scotland | Played 12 W5 D2 L5 |
Croatia had close games against Wales and their form in qualifying was mixed with a draw in Azerbaijan and a defeat against Hungary.
The Czech Republic lost 3 games against Bulgaria, England, and Kosovo all away from home. Their home form where they won 4 from 4 including beating England was impressive.
England won 7 from 8 with their only defeat coming against the Czechs who won with a goal in the 85th minute. England were poor that evening and the Czech Republic deserved the win.
Scotland made it to Euro 2020 via the playoffs after wins against Israel and Serbia on penalties.
Their 10 group matches saw them win 5 and lose 5.
| Country | Key Match 1 | Key Match 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Croatia | Croatia 2 v Wales 1 | Wales 1 v Croatia 1 |
| Czech Republic | England 5 v Czech Republic 0 | Czech Republic 2 v England 1 |
| England | England 5 v Czech Republic 0 | Czech Republic 2 v England 1 |
| Scotland | Scotland 1 v Russia 2 | Russia 4 v Scotland 0 |
Group E
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| Poland | Played 10 W8 D1 L1 |
| Slovakia | Played 10 W5 D2 L3 |
| Spain | Played 10 W8 D2 L0 |
| Sweden | Played 10 W6 D3 L1 |
Poland finished top of their group after taking 4 points from Austria their main qualifying rivals. Their only defeat came away in Slovenia.
Slovakia made it to Euro 2020 via the playoffs beating both Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland. They got there in part by beating Hungary home and away.
Spain drew twice in Scandinavia against Norway and Sweden, apart from those games it was fairly easy for Luis Enrique's side.
Sweden held Spain to a draw in Stockholm but lost in Madrid. Their other draws came against neighbours Norway.
| Country | Key Match 1 | Key Match 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Poland | Austria 0 v Poland 1 | Poland 0 v Austria 0 |
| Slovakia | Slovakia 2 v Hungary 0 | Hungary 1 v Slovakia 2 |
| Spain | Spain 3 v Sweden 0 | Sweden 1 v Spain 1 |
| Sweden | Sweden 0 v Spain 3 | Sweden 1 v Spain 1 |
Group F
| Country | Qualifying |
|---|---|
| France | Played 10 W8 D1 L1 |
| Germany | Played 8 W7 L1 |
| Hungary | Played 10 W6 L4 |
| Portugal | Played 8 W5 D2 L1 |
France lost and drew to Turkey, apart from those blips the french won all their other games efficiently.
Germany lost to the dutch at home and beat them away. They averaged over 3.5 goals a game.
Hungary had no draws in the group stages and finished 4th in their group. They made it into the finals via the promotion stage of the Euros, they scored twice in the last 5 minutes to edge out Iceland.
Portugal were held to a draw in Lisbon by Ukraine and then lost in Kiev, the Ukrainians topped the group.
| Country | Key Match 1 | KeyMatch 2 |
|---|---|---|
| France | Turkey 2 v France 0 | France 1 v Turkey 1 |
| Germany | Netherlands 2 v Germany 3 | Germany 2 v Netherlands 4 |
| Hungary | Hungary 2 v Croatia 1 | Croatia 3 v Hungary 0 |
| Portugal | Portugal 0 v Ukraine 0 | Ukraine 2 v Portugal 1 |
