Denmark vs Austria
Their Euro 2020 exploits were one of the stories of the summer.
A triumph against the odds amidst the backdrop of a tragedy averted – an incident that shocked and upset the entire football world.
Now with their World Cup 2022 qualifying campaign nearing a close – and qualification all but assured – even neutrals must hope the Danes can have a successful tournament in Qatar next year.
Who knows, perhaps Christian Eriksen can even be there.
What a wonderful sight it would be to see Eriksen return and skipper Simon Kjaer lead his country out on the biggest stage.
For the few people who don’t know, Kjaer is the player who may have saved the life of the star man when he collapsed on the pitch against Finland in Copenhagen this summer.
Kjaer reacted quickly though, performing CPR on his stricken teammate before medical professionals attended to the fallen midfielder.
In fact, create World Cup qualifying highlights against Austria at the Parken Stadium on Tuesday night and they will be home and hosed.
Talking Points
That is after they maintained their 100 per cent record in Group F with a 4-0 success in Moldova on Saturday night.
Kasper Hjulmand’s men have now won seven of their last eight games in all competitions, scoring 22 goals and conceding three.
Indeed, Denmark are yet to drop points or concede a goal in the qualifiers and occupy top spot with 21 points – remember, they also were denied a possible place in the final of Euro 2020 with a penalty that never should have been awarded against them.
While the Scandinavians are in fine form, it’s been a largely underwhelming campaign for the Austrians, although they still have a chance.
They began their qualification run with a 2-2 draw against Scotland, a match they led until five minutes from time.
A 3-1 win over the Faroe Islands gave them three points but a 4-0 loss to the Danes hurt them.
Last month, they again started out with points after beating Moldova 2-0. Things went bad quickly after that. A 5-2 loss to Israel was quickly followed by a 1-0 loss in their second game against Scotland before they defeated the Faroes 2-0 on Saturday evening.
In their defence, Das Team have injuries aplenty right now with key men like Marko Arnautovic and Christoph Baumgartner absent.
Valentino Lazaro, Philipp Lienhart and veteran defender Aleksandar Dragovic are also missing.
Win in Denmark on Tuesday and they have a chance; any other result and they can forget reaching a World Cup for the first time since 1998.
If the Austrians are to secure a playoff spot, the time is now.
History
Denmark will have fresh and fond memories of their qualifier with Austria seven months ago.
That was a meeting in Vienna when the Danes netted four second-half goals without reply with Andreas Skov Olsen opening and completing the scoring either side of goals from Joakim Maehle and Pierre-Emile Hojberg.
That is one of five Danish victories in this fixture coupled to four Austrian triumphs and a solitary draw in a 1951 friendly.
Aside from the World Cup qualifier in March, all bar two matches have been friendlies.
The other competitive encounters were in 1991 qualifying for the European Championships when Denmark defeated Austria home and away.
A Bent Christensen double (2-1) won the match in Odense before the same player was among the scorers in a more comfortable (3-0) victory in Vienna later that year.
While Denmark narrowly missed out on qualifying for Euro 92, they ended up being an 11th-hour replacement and the rest is fairytale history!
Betting Tip
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Denmark vs Austria | First Half 1X2 Denmark @ 2.15 |
| October 13, 02:45 (GMT+8) |
The SBOTOP World Cup qualifying betting odds back the Danes all the way, beginning with 1X2 @ 1.55 and Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 1.98.
Austria can be backed 1X2 @ 5.20 or Asian Handicap +0.75 @ 2.25.
Goals wise, over 2.50 goals is available @ 2.08, under 2.25 @ 2.05, total goal 0-1 @ 2.82, 2-3 @ 1.84 and 4-6 @ 3.80.
Although unlikely, another 4-0 Danish win will pay out @ 27.00 with Correct Score, while a 1X2 draw – not altogether unexpected given the importance of the fixture for the Austrians – is available @ 3.80.
Austria have nothing to lose but I do not think they will be able to muster a point, given their inconsistencies and lack of key men.
I also feel Denmark will want to seal qualification in style in front of their own supporters.
That is why I am expecting them to lead at the break on their way to victory.
My *** prediction is First Half 1X2 Denmark @ 2.15.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
| = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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