What is it with England and losing in the semi-finals of major tournaments? The Three Lions fell agonisingly short in extra-time against the Netherlands on Thursday night and Gareth Southgate’s side must now contest the third-place playoff on Sunday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Holland will take on Nations League hosts Portugal in the showpiece fixture. It was the Cristiano Ronaldo show for Portugal in their semi-final, with the Juventus forward notching a hat-trick in front of a jubilant Estadio do Dragao, Porto.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the best football betting odds ahead of Sunday’s double header. Can England restore some pride? Only time will tell…
SUNDAY
Switzerland vs England (2pm)
Switzerland were second best against Portugal – even the most ardent Swiss supporter will admit that. However, they showed signs of quality and England will be wary of a potential Nations League upset in Sunday’s third place playoff.
888sport punters may be tempted by the 5/2 for Switzerland to win. This is a game that neither team wants to play and Switzerland will be ready to take advantage if England’s performance drops. Although whether it can drop much further is questionable…
Thursday’s result was very disappointing from an English perspective. The 2018 World Cup semi-finalists led at half-time through Marcus Rashford’s penalty but negative tactics in the second half cost England dearly. Once Holland drew level, they never looked like losing.
At 19/10 to score at anytime, Raheem Sterling is worth backing in the goal scorer markets for Sunday’s game. The Manchester City star failed to make an impact after he was handed the captaincy earlier in the week but he could bounce back on Sunday afternoon.
England will be back to fight another day and the Three Lions are well priced at 3/1 to win with both teams scoring. If Southgate can keep his side motivated, they should have the beating of this hit-and-miss Switzerland outfit.
TIP: England to win and both teams to score (3/1)
Portugal vs Netherlands (7:45pm)
Portugal are favourites for Nations League glory – just as they were before the semi-finals earlier in the week. Holland’s victory over England raised a few eyebrows but neutrals will be expecting Portugal to win, especially taking home advantage into account.
All eyes will be on Ronaldo here and the Porto crowd will be expecting big things from the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. 5/4 for Ronaldo to get his name on the scoresheet is a great price and it features prominently in our best football tips this weekend.
Meanwhile, Ronald Koeman’s side were worthy winners against England. Southgate’s side led at half-time but failed to finish the job – Holland took full advantage. The Dutch were far from perfect but a repeat of that performance might be enough on Sunday night.
Expect the Netherlands to make a fast start in this contest. Portugal may find themselves under the cosh in the first half and 13/10 for Holland to score in the opening 45 minutes is well worth considering.
888sport are one of the only betting sites to offer “lift the trophy” markets on the UEFA Nations League and Netherlands are the value bet at 11/10. As bad as England were, the Dutch showed plenty of promise going forward and could prove too strong here.
TIP: Netherlands to lift the trophy (11/10)
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
