The UEFA Euro championship has reached the quarterfinal stages and there has already been a massive upset in the tournament with Iceland eliminating England. Continue reading as we have our Euro 2016 Quarterfinal Preview and Betting Tips.
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Poland vs Portugal (Friday 5am AEST)
Cristiano Ronaldo will head into this clash with a bit of added personal incentive after Lionel Messi lost in the Copa America with Argentina and announced his retirement from International football. If he is able to add international silverware to his trophy cabinet it could lift him above Messi in the ongoing debate about which player is better.
However, it won’t be an easy task for Portugal and Ronaldo as Poland’s defence has been great throughout their opening four games as they have only conceded one goal and it was an outrageous overhead kick from Xherdan Shaqiri’s outrageous overhead kick. There biggest troubles are in front of goal as Arkadiusz Milik has missed plenty of chances whilst superstar striker Robert Lewndowski hasn’t got going yet in France.
Portugal showed in their win over Croatia that they are able to grind out a win. They were cracked far too easily in the group stages but their mentality clearly changed heading into the knock out stages where they lifted their focus on defence. If they can bring the same attitude into this match then their chances of winning will increase as they will be able to create opportunities with the way Poland is playing but finishing them off will be the hard thing. As Ronaldo has begun to improve in his last two games, we are predicting his side to advance.
TIP: Portugal @ $2.25 with Sportsbet
Wales vs Belgium (Saturday 5am AEST)
Wales successful return to a European tournament continued in the round of 16 when they were able to overcome Northern Ireland. However, their task will get a lot harder, if not impossible when they face a young Belgium side that is beginning to hit their straps. If Wales are able to pull off the unlikely victory, it would be the furthest the nation has reached in a major football tournament.
Eden Hazard regained his best form, as he was the creator architect of his side’s 4-0 flogging of Hungary. Hazard was dangerous throughout the match and made the final pass for a goal before putting his own name on the scorer’s sheet with a great individual goal. However, there is much more to worry about for Wales as Kevin De Bruyne is just as strong on the other flank whilst Romelu Lukaku has made the most of his opportunities up front. Their biggest issue will be defensively with Vincent Kompany on the sidelines through injury but if they can continue to attack as they did against Hungary then Belgium will be hard to stop.
Wales biggest hope lies on the shoulders of Real Madrid star Gareth Bale, but they will need an added effort from all of their players, including Aaron Ramsey. Ashley Williams suffered a shoulder injury in the final minutes of Wales victory over Northern Ireland but he has recovered in time and will start against Belgium. This is a massive boost for the side, as their chances without him would have dipped dramatically. Belgium have a young and star studded line up and it would be silly to bet against them in this one.
TIP: Belgium @ $1.73 with CrownBet
Germany vs Italy (Sunday 5am AEST)
In the biggest match of the quarterfinal stages Italy will take on the World Champions Germany. It is a tough draw for Italy as they were in one of the tougher pools and despite finishing in top spot they were forced to play Spain in the round of 16 and now they are lined up against another one of the tournament favourites.
Italy were by far the better side against Spain and if it wasn’t for the incredible goal keeping ability of the Spanish keeper David de Gea, then the score line could have easily been a lot more one sided. However, Italy was eventually able to make the breakthrough and once that happened they were able to rely on their defence to get the job done before they sealed the match in the 90th minute.
Germany had no problems in their round of 16 match up against Slovakia. They grabbed an early goal and continued to press throughout the game and they finished off the match as 3-0 victors.
These two sides met in the 2012 Euro semi-finals and it was Italy who came out on top 2-1. Italy is known for its impressive performances in major tournaments, however over the last four years Germany has become the powerhouse and World Champions whilst the Italian side has continued to age. It has been a tough schedule for the Italians whilst the Germans have been cruising and this could allow the World Champions to be a lot fresher and advance.
TIP: Germany @ $2.25 with Sportsbet
France vs Iceland (Monday 5am AEST)
The fairy tale continues for Iceland as they pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Euro tournament to knock out England in the Round of 16. Funnily enough it was the second time England was removed from Europe in the space of a week. The victory was made even more impressive for Iceland as they fell behind inside the opening five-minutes after Wayne Rooney converted from the penalty spot. They equalised just minutes later and found themselves in front after they continually pushed forward.
The tournament hosts also overcame a deficit in their opening match after they gave away an early penalty to Ireland. Antoine Griezmann found the back of the net twice in the space of three minutes in the second half as he lifted France into the quarterfinals. Griezmann has scored three times for his nation this tournament and he has no doubt cemented himself in the starting line up.
Iceland has surprised everybody in their first ever major tournament and France definitely won’t be taking them lightly in this match. They have the expectations of a nation on their shoulders as nothing short of a final will be considered success and whilst we believe the French team will advance, they are at too short odds to back as they have left things late on multiple occasions and Iceland have proved it is hard to crack their defence.
TIP: No bet
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Take note: Any of the tips in this article are simply the author’s opinion, so bet at your own risk and always gamble responsibly. Also be sure to check out the Before You Bet Twitter Page for all our thoughts in the lead up to bets! Happy punting!
