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EURO 2021 GROUP C: Schedule, Table, Favourites & Preview

Group C of Euro 2021 sees one former winner matched with two nations that haven’t made it out of the group and one making its first appearance. It’s fair to say that the Dutch side managed by Frank De Boer are the favourites to make it to the next round but it will be tough for them.

The Netherlands are playing in their first major tournament since they made it all the way to the semi-finals at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. They failed to qualify for the Euros or the World Cup after it and are now eager to make up for lost time. Their young squad is stacked with quality.

Austria are aiming to push them all the way. They made it through a tricky qualifying group behind the leaders Poland. They’re a solid team with some top quality players.

Ukraine can be talked about in a similar way. They have some exciting attacking players to choose from and had an excellent qualifying campaign, beating the 2018 winners Portugal to top spot. 

North Macedonia completes the group. They are making their first appearance at a major tournament. North Macedonia will hope that star man and captain Goran Pandev can lead them to a good showing at the finals.

EURO 2021 GROUP C TABLE

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EURO 2021 GROUP C SCHEDULE AND TIPS

Date Game Time (UK) Venue
13/6/21 Austria vs North Macedonia 17:00 Arena National, Bucharest
13/6/21 Netherlands vs Ukraine 20:00 Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam
17/6/21 Ukraine vs North Macedonia 14:00 Arena National, Bucharest
17/6/21 Netherlands vs Austria 20:00 Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam
21/6/21 North Macedonia vs Netherlands 17:00 Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam
21/6/21 Ukraine vs Austria 17:00 Arena National, Bucharest


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The Netherlands are one of the host nations at the tournament. Half of the matches – all three that the Dutch side will play – are to be held at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam. The rest will be played at the National Stadium in Bucharest. It’s a short three-hour flight from Amsterdam to the Romanian capital.

The schedule favours the Netherlands, of course. They start with a match against Ukraine in Amsterdam before facing off against Austria in matchday two. It’s a five-day stretch that will surely go a long way to deciding which teams top the group. Matchday three sees Austria and Ukraine face off in Bucharest in another important fixture.

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EURO 2021 GROUP C PREVIEW

There’s a step into the unknown in Group C. Unlike many of the other groups in Euro 2020, this one has some uncommon international fixtures and a European championship debutante. The Netherlands are the big favourites to top the group and to reach the next stage but we should expect surprises.

Their first match sees Frank De Boer’s men come up against Ukraine. The Netherlands have played Ukraine just twice before and not for 11 years. Andriy Shevchenko started for Ukraine in that match and he will manage his nation in this one.

They also take on Ukraine and then North Macedonia. The Netherlands haven’t played either of these nations in the last decade. Ukraine and Austria haven’t played the other for a decade either. North Macedonia are the only nation to have played some of their group rivals in recent years. They lost all four matches to Ukraine and Austria in the last decade.

But a lot has changed since then for all of these nations. Euro Group C represents a good opportunity for all of them to progress. The schedule gives the Netherlands the edge but after that, it’s anyone’s group.

The schedule certainly gives some nations an advantage. The Netherlands, of course, benefit from this the most. They are based on home soil and play all three group stage matches at their national stadium. Austria will set up camp in their own country and travel to each venue. They have the trickiest schedule in that respect, having to travel vast distances for each match.

Ukraine have gone about things differently. They have elected to set up camp away from home soil and will make Bucharest their base. That will give them the bonus of shorter travel times for their two key matches against Austria and North Macedonia. They play the Netherlands first so after that, they’ll stay in Romania. North Macedonia are yet to state where they’ll set up base so it’s too early to say whether they’ll be at a disadvantage.


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Euro 2021 Group C Prediction

The Netherlands are undoubtedly the favourites to win this group and to qualify for the next stage of the competition. Frank De Boer’s side are available at the best price of 1.44 to secure top spot in Group C. That would represent a good achievement for them and is the likeliest outcome by far.

There isn’t much separating Ukraine and Austria in the odds after that. The favourite varies by bookmaker but the odds hover around 6.50 to 7.00 for either nation to win the group. North Macedonia are out at 26.00 to win the group and 3.45 to qualify for the knockout stage. 

We are backing the Netherlands to win Group A at 1.44.

EURO 2021 GROUP C: NETHERLANDS

FIFA World Ranking Best Result at European Championships Last European Championship result (2016) Coach
#14 Winners (1988) Did not qualify Ronald Koeman

It’s a big tournament for Frank De Boer’s men. The Netherlands struggled in the aftermath of that third-place finish at the FIFA World Cup and Louis Van Gaal’s departure in 2014. They missed out on qualifying for two consecutive major tournaments for the first time since the mid-1980s as a new generation of players came through.

Those players are now well and truly embedded in this squad. Matthijs De Ligt, Frenkie De Jong, Donny Van de Beek and Donyell Malen form an exciting young spine for the Netherlands to build around. That is combined with experienced winners around the squad. Daley Blind, Georginio Wijnaldum, Ryan Babel, and Memphis Depay add flair and tenacity to a talented squad.

One big absence is the national team captain and star defender, Virgil Van Dijk. It’s still unclear if the Liverpool man will be fully fit for the European Championships. That’s before even considering how well he will play after missing so long with a serious knee injury. 

But the Netherlands have shown they have enough quality to thrive – with or without Van Dijk. They’ve secured some impressive results in recent years. They beat Germany and England in 2019 and drew with both Italy and Spain in 2020. De Boer and Ronald Koeman before him have helped bring through this next generation of talent.

They showed so much potential when qualifying for this tournament. They finished two points behind Germany in Qualifying Group C and beat Joachim Loew’s side 4-2 in Hamburg. Had they won in Northern Ireland and scored a few more goals along the way then they would have qualified ahead of the 2018 World champions. They’re an excellent side that will be eager to make up for the time they lost in the last few years.

Euro 2021 Group C, Netherlands, Prediction

They should impress here. The Netherlands have a challenging group but they should top it and reach the knockout stage of the competition with little trouble. Playing three matches on home soil will surely help their cause. 

It’s hardly been the easiest year for the Netherlands national team. The departure of Ronald Koeman and the injury to captain Virgil Van Dijk certainly affected their preparation for the tournament. But they still come into this competition with a good chance of success. This core group of young players has tremendous potential and that should be on full display here. 

Netherlands group prediction: 1st

EURO 2021 GROUP C: AUSTRIA

FIFA World Ranking Best Result at European Championships Last European Championship result (2016) Coach
#26 Group Stage (2008, 2016) Group Stage Franco Foda

This represents a great opportunity for Austria to reach the knockout stage of a major tournament for the first time since the 1954 World Cup. They’ve failed to impress at the European Championships in recent years despite co-hosting the tournament in 2008. They’ve never won a match at the finals of this competition and drawn just two of their six matches. 

But recent signs suggest that will change. They enjoyed a solid qualifying campaign that saw them finish 2nd behind Poland despite losing their opening two matches. Austria will take further confidence from the fact that they beat North Macedonia to second place. Franco Foda’s men beat North Macedonia twice including a stomping 4-1 in Skopje. 

They kept things tight at both ends. Austria kept four clean sheets in their 10 qualifying matches and conceded nine times. They were far from the highest-scoring nation in qualifying on 19 goals but just one player found the net more than twice over the 10 matches. Marko Arnautovic scored five times.

It has been a couple of promising years for Austria since Foda took over in 2018. They’ve kept 14 clean sheets in the 32 matches that the former Storm Graz boss has managed and secured some impressive results. The highlight was the 2-1 win against Germany back in 2018.

Foda will hope to surpass that achievement at this tournament. They have a good chance of doing just that by reaching the knockout stage. It’s a good draw for them and this solid side could impress.

Euro 2021 Group C, Austria, Prediction

The foundation is there for Austria to do what they’ve never done before and reach the knockout stage of this competition. It’s only their third attempt but this team has some quality players that could star. 

They’ll look to David Alaba and Marcel Sabitzer to fire them into the next round of the competition. The pair has impressed in the Bundesliga for some time and now is the time for them to showcase their talent on the European stage.

They face North Macedonia in their opening match in a fixture that could lay the foundation for qualification. They then travel to Amsterdam to take on the Netherlands before what will surely be the all-important match. 

Austria take on Ukraine in Bucharest in their final group match that could decide which team has a guaranteed place in the next round. We think they’ll have enough.

Austria group prediction: 2nd 

EURO 2021 GROUP C: UKRAINE

FIFA World Ranking Best Result at European Championships Last European Championship result (2016) Coach
#13 Group Stage (2012, 2016) Group Stage Andriy Shevchenko

It’s the third consecutive edition of the European Championship that Ukraine have qualified for. They haven’t made it out of the group stage in either of the previous two but they have a good chance here. They’ve played six matches and lost five of them before Euro 2020. 

But their current manager knows all about that. Ukraine have previously scored just twice in the European Championship and both of them came in the same match. Andriy Shevchenko bagged them both in their 2-1 win over Sweden back in 2012. Now, the former AC Milan and Chelsea forward is aiming to lead his nation further than they’ve ever been before.

Their qualification campaign suggests that is achievable. They finished top of Qualifying Group B ahead of the reigning champions Portugal. It was an excellent achievement for Ukraine who finished unbeaten in Group B and even beat Portugal 2-1 in Kiev. It’s their best ever performance when qualifying for the European Championship. 

Unlike in previous years, there is no single outstanding player in this Ukraine team. They have some hugely talented individuals in Yevhen Konoplyanka and Andriy Yarmolenko but the team isn’t built around either. They scored 17 goals in qualifying and eight different players found the net. That’s as many as Portugal who scored five more goals than them.

But it wasn’t goals that helped Ukraine get there but clean sheets. They shut their opponents out in five of their eight matches and conceded just four times. Only two nations conceded fewer goals than Ukraine did in qualifying and one of them is ranked number 1 in the world right now, Belgium. They’ll be tough to beat and have goals from all over the pitch.

Euro 2021 Group C, Ukraine, Prediction

That puts them in a good position. There isn’t much between Ukraine and Austria behind the Netherlands in Group C. It’s their best ever chance of qualifying for the knockout stage of this competition.

But history is against Ukraine here. They’ve never made it to the knockout stage of a competition before and have won just one of their previous six matches in this tournament. The man who has scored both of the goals that Ukraine have managed in this competition now helms the team. Qualifying for the knockout stage of this competition may well be the best moment of Andriy Shevchenko’s international career. 

Ukraine group prediction: 3rd

Euro 2021 North Macedonia Preview

FIFA World Ranking Best Result at European Championships Last European Championship result (2016) Coach
TBA TBA TBA TBA

 

This is history in the making for North Macedonia. They’ve qualified for their first major tournament since the country’s formation after beating the odds. 

They were unfortunate not to reach this stage outright in Qualifying Group G. They finished just two points behind their eventual rivals in this group, Austria. But North Macedonia got another chance after their impressive performance in the UEFA Nations League. They got here the hard way after coming through the Qualifying Play-offs.

But North Macedonia are now eager to impress. It’s a squad without too many household names save perhaps Goran Pandev. The North Macedonia captain was a part of Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan team that won the treble in 2010. Pandev is now 37 years old but is the player with the most goals and the most appearances in the history of his national side. 

Pandev bagged two goals in qualifying but it’s not a one-man team. Napoli midfielder Elif Elmas was his nation’s top scorer in qualifying and Enis Bardhi wasn’t far behind. It was Pandev who scored the goal in the final of the play-offs but it rounded off a fine team move.

There is certainly a great deal of uncertainty about North Macedonia. They kept just two clean sheets in qualifying, no side that qualified for the finals kept fewer than that. But North Macedonia stayed in all of their matches other than the 4-1 defeat to Austria. They didn’t score too many either and the result is that they had one of the lowest average numbers of total match goals in qualifying at just 2.50.

That won’t prevent them from trying to put on a good show in this competition. North Macedonia have probably achieved their goals by getting this far but they’ll aim to upset the odds.

Euro 2021 North Macedonia Preview

It will be surprising if North Macedonia get too many points in this competition. They’re in a tough group alongside some nations that have beaten them in the last few years. They are the big outsiders to get out of the groups. They are 3.75 just to qualify for the knockout stage of this competition but way out at 26.00 to top the group.

That’s an unrealistic goal for this team. North Macedonia are the big outsiders and anything other than three defeats would surely represent a good showing for them. They’ll be tough opponents but it would be a big surprise to see them win any of the matches.

North Macedonia group prediction: 4th 

 

Other Euro 2021 Groups

Euro 2021 – Group A
Euro 2021 – Group B
Euro 2021 – Group D
Euro 2021 – Group E
Euro 2021 – Group F

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