Austria head into their match with Macedonia this coming Sunday. This is their first of three matches in their group stage at the Euro 2020 and scene of the action is Arena Nationala in Bucharest. Austria enter the Euro 2020 as number 23 in the FIFA world ranking, thus signifying the gap between these teams as Macedonia come here with a ranking of number 62.
They did well enough in qualifying to have claimed first place in some groups, but Austria had to settle for 2nd spot. They are likely to exit the Euro 2020 before the final, as they arrive with the most awful of stats. Austria have not won a match at a big tournament since the World Cup 1990 in Italy.
Before heading into their first match Macedonia rank as hefty favorites with the bookmakers to finish bottom of the group. Failing to book their place directly through the group stages, Macedonia sealed a place at the Euro's the hard way through play off's. As such they enter the Euro 2020 as heavy outsiders even for a place in the next round.
Austria vs Macedonia stats and analysis
Austria have not exactly set the world on fire lately when it comes to goal scoring. Austria scored a lowly 19 times in the last 10 internationals creating an average of just 1.9 goals per game. They held on for a clean sheet in 4 of these matches, conceding 9 goals which is an average of 0.9 per game.
Macedonia head into Euro 2020 hoping to keep their impressive defensive stats from their last 10 internationals going. Macedonia averaged a just about adequate 1.2 goals per game, with a total of 12 goals scored. In contrast they only allowed 13 against for an average of 1.3 per game. Rather amazingly they only kept their opponents from scoring in 2 of the matches.
Missing out on three points in their opening match at the tournament will be nothing short of scandalous for Austria. With more tough matches coming up, securing a win in the opener is essential for Austria here.
Macedonia faces tough assignment in every encounter at the Euro 2020, but from a positive perspective they have very little to lose in all of their matches.
Stats and facts for Austria and Macedonia.
- Austria has won the last 4 matches in a row at home;
- Austria has won in the last 4 of 5 matches at home;
- Austria scored in the last 7 of 9 matches;
- Total goals was UNDER 3.5 in Austria's last 3 of 5 matches.
- Macedonia scored in the last 8 of 10 matches;
- Macedonia conceded in the last 8 of 10 matches;
- Total goals was UNDER 3.5 in Macedonia's last 4 of 6 matches.
Lineup Austria vs Macedonia
Form Austria vs Macedonia
Austria hope to stop the rot.
Austria go into this encounter on the back of some poor performances. In their last 3 matches, Austria got a 3-1 win against the Faroe Islands, followed by a 4-0 defeat against Denmark. Their most recent match brought a 1-0 defeat against England.
Macedonia hope to boost points tally.
One can't really point a finger on the results for Macedonia in past weeks as they have performed according to their level. The last 3 times Macedonia played out an international match they destroyed Liechtenstein by 5 goals, which was followed by a 2-1 win against Germany. Their most recent international served up a 1-1 draw against Slovenia.
Austria v Macedonia Fixture History
When these two nations last faced off against each other, Austria ended up taking all 3 points in a 2-1 victory. In fact they came through the same group in qualifying with Austria coming out on top both home and away.
Full Time Betting
According to bookmakers Austria have a 67% chance of beating Macedonia. That equals odds of 1.50 on Austria to win, while the draw sits at 3.90. Placing a bet on the away win for Macedonia returns you odds 7.00.
Topscorers markets
With Sasa Kalajdzic on 3 goals in the last 6 internationals for Austria, he certainly catches the eye as a possible goalscorer on again. With Aleksandar Trajkovski on 3 goals in the last 6 internationals for he has delivered the goods for Macedonia, who will be hoping he can add to to his total.
