2020 UEFA Euro Group D Betting
Two of the best teams at the 2018 World Cup headline Group D. Croatia and England made it to the semifinals of the last World Cup with Croatia beating England 2-1 in extra time to advance to the final. That was Croatia’s best ever performance at an international tournament, and it was England’s best finish at the World Cup since 1990. Those teams are favored to finish first and second in the group, but Scotland will have an advantage playing two games in Glasgow.
2020 UEFA Euro Betting Odds
UEFA Euro Group D Country Profiles
England
FIFA Ranking: 4
Best Finish: Semifinals (1968, 1996)
England is known for coming up short in international competitions. This is a soccer mad nation that only has one World Cup to its credit, and the Three Lions have never made it to the finals of a European Championship. There is a lot of optimism surrounding this team in 2021 under Gareth Southgate though after their strong performance at the 2018 World Cup.
The Three Lions will be playing all their Group Stage games at Wembley. Harry Kane is still in fine form, and the presence of Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling gives England one of the best attacking trios in the tournament. This back line is still strong with Harry Maguire and John Stones in the middle of the pitch, and Jordan Pickford shined in net at the last World Cup. Pickford has been injured in recent months though, and there is little international experience behind him.
Croatia
FIFA Ranking: 14
Best Finish: Quarterfinals (1996, 2008)
Croatia has been boom or bust at the World Cup, but they have yet to have much success at the European Championships. They were knocked out by eventual champions Portugal in extra time in the Round of 16 the last time they were on this stage. The Chequered Ones have never made it past the quarterfinals, but they are hoping to beat that performance after finishing runner-up to France at the 2018 World Cup.
Captain Luka Modric is the lynchpin of this team. Modric has been the man in the middle for Real Madrid for nearly a decade, and he is still one of the best set-up men in the world. There are other talented players though as Ivan Perisic can put in the goals, and Domagoj Vida and Dejan Lovren are great in defense. However, all those players are 30 or older, and the only standout player under 30 on the roster is Sime Vrsaljko.
Czech Republic
FIFA Ranking: 40
Best Finish: Runner-up (1996)
The Czechs have not missed a European Championship since Czechoslovakia split into two countries in the early 1990s. They finished runner-up to Germany in the 1996 Euros thanks to their defense, and it will be a similar formula for this team’s success.
No player has more than 10 goals for the national team. Patrik Schick has been a standout with Bayer Leverkusen and has 10 goals in 24 caps, but there isn’t another real goal scoring threat on the roster. This is a relatively young team without veterans Petr Cech and Tomas Rosicky.
Scotland
FIFA Ranking: 44
Best Finish: Group Stage (1992, 1996)
This will be Scotland’s first appearance in the Euros in 25 years. Scotland won a game in its two previous trips to this tournament, but the Scots have yet to qualify for the knockout rounds.
Scotland was fortunate to make it back to the Euros. The Scots beat Israel in penalties after a scoreless 120 minutes to win its first knockout game, and they secured their spot in the Euros by upsetting Serbia in penalties. John McGinn has 10 goals for Scotland, but no other player has more than five goals. That will put the pressure on Andrew Robertson and the back line.
Group D Schedule
GROUP STAGE
Sunday June 13
England vs. Croatia (London; 9 a.m. ET, 3 p.m.)
Monday June 14
Scotland vs. Czech Republic (Glasgow; 9 a.m. ET, 3 p.m.)
Friday June 18
Croatia vs. Czech Republic (Glasgow; noon ET, 6 p.m.)
England vs. Scotland (London; 3 p.m. ET, 9 p.m.)
Tuesday June 22
Czech Republic vs. England (London; 3 p.m. ET, 9 p.m.)
Croatia vs. Scotland (Glasgow; 3 p.m. ET, 9 p.m.)
*Top two in each group plus four best third-placed teams advance
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