Euro 2020 Group C Betting Guide: Austria, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Ukraine

Austria - Can challenge for runner-up spot

Matko Jankovic of the Betfair trading team thinks a well-organised Austria team can challenge for the Group runner up spot.

Profile: Austria have played in two European Championships (2008 and 2016) but are yet to win a match at the finals. This time, however, they boasts their strongest squad for many years. It features top German Bundesliga talents like David Alaba, Christoph Baumgartner and Sasa Kalajdzic who fans hope can fire Austria into the knockout stages.

How They Qualified: Austria finished second in their qualifying group behind Poland with six wins, one draw and three defeats. Six of their 19 goals in qualifying were scored by former-West Ham forward Marko Arnautovic .

The Manager: Franco Foda was appointed in 2017 and has 20 wins, four draws and eight defeats in his 32 matches in charge.

The Squad: Foda usually plays a 4-4-2 and likes his well-disciplined squad to hit opponents with pacey counter-attacks - a style that many of them are used to playing for their clubs. Midfielders Valentina Lazaro and Alaba, along with powerhouse forwards Arnautovic and Sabitzer, can hurt teams. Sasa Kalajdzic has had a good season with Stuttgart and is waiting in the wings if Arnautovic underperforms or has one of his meltdowns.

Key Man: Alaba was the third fastest player in the German Bundesliga this season and will without doubt be his country's main man this summer. He's the designated free kick taker and is likely to hit plenty of shots.

One To Watch: At the time of writing, 23-year-old Kalajdzic has scored 16 goals and got six assists for Stuttgart. He's considered one of the most promising talents in the Bundesliga and RB Leipzig are reportedly weighing up a bid for him this summer. They might have to compete with Juventus for his signature, so he is clearly one to watch.

Tournament Prospects: If Austria play to their full potential, and are as strong in attack as they were in qualifying, then they should challenge Ukraine to finish second in Group C where the Netherlands will be expected to finish top.

How To Back Austria: The opening match against Macedonia is a must win for Austria because the Netherlands, up second, will be a tough assignment. Austria's final group match against Ukraine should be the big one and, if Foda's men perform well, they have every chance of taking three points. So finishing as group-runners up looks like a possible outcome here for Austria. At 8/5 Austria are a good bet to finish as runners-up in Group C.

Netherlands - They have quality but doubts still surround manager

Jason Murphy of the Betfair trading team says that, although the Netherlands will be expected to win Group C, they are missing key defenders and there are still question marks about their manager.

Profile: The Netherlands didn't qualify for Euro 2016, or the 2018 World Cup, so their fans and players are hungry for some overdue tournament football.

How They Qualified: They came out of the same group as Germany and Northern Ireland, losing at home to the former early on before getting their revenge in Hamburg six months later. A change of manager last summer made this an unusual campaign for the Dutch and new boss Frank de Boer is the first manager in their history to fail to win any of his first four games.

The Manager: De Boer stepped in after Ronald Koeman decided he couldn't turn down the chance to manage Barcelona. De Boer, who won over 100 caps for the national team, was the assistant coach when the Netherlands reached the final of the 2010 World Cup. He won four successive Eredivisie titles with Ajax but lasted only three Premier League games in charge of Crystal Palace. He has managed only four wins in his nine games as Netherlands boss.

The Squad: Missing Virgil van Djik is a big blow and Daley Blind is also a major doubt, while Tim Krul will likely get the nod in goal. The preferred formation is 4-4-3. Up front, Luuk de Jong offers something different to Memphis Depay if De Boer so wishes to call on the youngster.

Key Man: Frankie de Jong can do it all as a midfielder - running box to box, holding, acting as playmaker and even dropping partner Mathia de Light at centre back if necessary. Ideally, De Boer will want De Jong in midfield as he is excellent at running with the ball and always composed under pressure.

One To Watch: Don't judge Depay on his time at Manchester United. Since leaving United for Lyon he has been excellent, scoring 62 goals in 137 league games. His 23 goals in 62 games is a decent return for the national side.

Tournament Prospects: The last time the Netherlands missed back to back major tournaments, they won the next one at Euro '88. That said, this team has no Macro Van Basten. Reaching the semi-finals is a possibility but looks unlikely without Van Djik.

How To Bet On The Netherlands: The Netherlands have the advantage of home games in the Group stage and should come through with no problems. But given the injury concerns coming into the tournament, and the fact there are question marks about the new manager, it is hard to see this Dutch team delivering a title, and even a semi-final berth is unlikely, so perhaps the best way to bet on them is to lay them in the 'To Reach Semi-Final' market.

North Macedonia - Group minnows will play with pride

Matko Jankovic of the Betfair trading team hails the resilience of North Macedonia but says they're likely to finish bottom of the Group.

Profile: Euro 2020 will be North Macedonia's first ever major tournament and qualifying is a monumental achievement. Back home, the players were hailed as heroes and greeted with tears of joy when their qualification was confirmed. Northern Macedonia have one of the youngest squads at Euro 2020 and contains players from clubs in the Premier League, Serie A and other big European leagues.

How They Qualified: North Macedonia qualified through the play-offs where they beat Kosovo 2-1 in the semi-final before a 1-0 victory against Georgia in the final. Goran Pandev scored the crucial goal and wrote himself into the nation's history books.

The Manager: Igor 'Mrme' Angelovski managed Rabotnicki, one of the biggest clubs in Macedonia, prior to taking charge of the national team role. Under his management, Macedonia have 22 wins, 10 draws and have lost 16.

The Squad: The team relies mostly on Pandev, Enis Bardhi and Eljif Elmas for creativity. Expect them to sit deep and try to hit opponents on the counter-attack. Macedonia change their formation regularly but if Angelovski does have a preferred way to line up then it's probably 3-5-2. Leeds United's Ezgjan Alioski will be on the wing while Arijan Ademi will be crucial in the centre of the midfield.

Key Man: Pandev, the 'football Jesus' of Macedonia, holds records as their all-time top goalscorer and most capped player. He has his own club in North Macedonia - Akademija Pandev - which competes in the country's top division.

One To Watch: Elmas hasn't been a regular starter for Napoli this season in Serie A but he started games in the Europa League and is growing as a player. He's a very swift and technical player with great vision. He always does well for Macedonia and will again be one of their most important players at just 21-years-old.

Tournament Prospects: They will be under absolutely no pressure at all and will be welcomed home as legends no matter what happens. They will do their best to put up a display in all their matches and will probably focus more on not getting hammered by the Dutch and their other Group C opponents.

How to Bet On North Macedonia: In Group C, with Austria, the Netherlands and Ukraine, Macedonia loos likely to finish bottom. You can back them at 1/2 to do so.

Ukraine - Could qualify with legend at the helm

Jason Murphy of the Betfair trading team provides the lowdown on a Ukraine team that are managed by their greatest ever player.

Profile: Ukraine have appeared at two European Championships - as hosts in 2012 and four years later in France - and on both occasions they failed to get beyond group stage.

How They Qualified: Their results in qualifying were very impressive and Ukraine topped what had looked like a difficult group with Portugal and Serbia. Things have not gone so well since, with five defeats and one win in the second half of 2020. In March, though, there was cause for optimism as Ukraine drew with France. Less impressive were draws against Finland and Kazakhstan.

The Manager: National legend Andriy Shevchenko is in charge. As a player he won the Champions League, Ballon d'Or and is his country's all-time top goalscorer. This is his first managerial job, after he was promoted from the assistant's role. Under Shevchenko, the team failed to qualify for the World Cup in 2018, but that faith was rewarded in the impressive campaign en route to Euro 2020.

The Squad: They're likely to play 4-1-4-1 against the Dutch in their opening match. Shevchenko will have gained a lot in the last 12 months, particularly tactically and lessons will have been learnt from the 4-0 and 7-1 defeats to Spain and France. The squad depth will have developed, and the talent is there, albeit limited.

Key Man: Premier League followers will know all about Man City's Oleksandr Zinchenko and West Ham's Andriy Yarmolenko, but the one to watch is Ruslan Malinovsky. His second season with Atalanta - in which he's got seven goals and 10 assists from 33 appearances (more than a third of which were from the bench) - is impressive. He was important figure in qualifying, with three goals and assists.

One To Watch: Andriy Yarmolenko has only played 375 minutes in the league this season, due to injury, but if fit for Ukraine he will be crucial to their chances. He sits second behind the manager on the country's all-time top scorer list.

Tournament Prospects: They could very easily get out of the group, possibly even top it. At same time, you could see them going home after three games. There is an argument that they are better prepared due to the tournament's delayed start. As mentioned, Shevchenko will have learned a lot in the last 12 months. They should get out of Group C and could meet Italy in the second round.

How To Back Them: Back Ukraine to go out in the last 16, possibly in that tie against Italy at Wembley.