Portugal and Austria will be hoping to get a first victory of Euro 2016 under their belts when they go head-to-head at the Parc des Princes on Saturday.
The Seleccao let slip a one-goal lead to draw 1-1 against minnows Iceland in their opening encounter but are 4/5 (1.80) favourites with bet365 to collect maximum points in Paris. Meanwhile, Marcel Koller’s men fell to a shock 2-0 defeat against neighbours Hungary in their first game and are 17/4 (5.25) underdogs to bounce back by coming out on top in this one.
The sides shared a 1-1 draw when they last met in a European Championship qualifier back in 1995, and there are odds of 13/5 (3.60) available on them cancelling each other out once again here.
Having been widely touted as dark horses to win a competition to which they have only just qualified for the first time in their history, Das Team were dealt a harsh reality check by Hungary last Tuesday.
Although they may have qualified for this tournament in impressive style, Koller’s side actually arrived in France on the back of three defeats in five warm-up exhibition matches.
With the loss against their local rivals having brought their record up to four defeats in six games, confidence must be looking fairly low as they prepare to take on probably their toughest Group F opposition.
What’s more, Aleksandar Dragovic’s red card has deprived Koller of his most dominant centre back, which is not a good omen for a defence preparing to take on Cristiano Ronaldo and Co.
Having made it through to at least the quarter-finals in each of the last five European Championships, Portugal should be expected to make their superior knowhow count against their inexperienced opposition.
While they may have come unstuck against an Iceland team playing under no pressure, Fernando Santos’ outfit look more than worthy of those 4/5 (1.80) odds to come out on top against the out-of-form opponents.Austrians
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