The Round of 16 for Euro 2020 is officially set. The two matches that have the most attention and the most discussions are Belgium vs Portugal and England vs Germany. Three of those four national teams came into the tournament as favorites. Out of these four, the two who advance to the final eight, their odds to win the title go up.
England and Belgium managed to top their group. Portugal and Germany managed to survive the tournament’s group of death, which was won by France. At this point, it’s a do-or-die situation for all competitors. These four favorites have to prove themselves to the fullest. In other words, they must show why they are favorites to win the European Championship.
19.6% – Ahead of the Round of 16, the Stats Perform prediction model rates France as the favourites to win EURO 2020 with a 19.6% chance, followed by Belgium (17.9%) and Spain (12.9%). Glory.
For more info on how the Stats Perform Predictor is calculated: https://t.co/0S3WTzwKae pic.twitter.com/GAzb4U9OyF
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 24, 2021
With Portugal being the defending European champions, they have the most pressure on their backs. Squaring off against a very strong Belgium squad won’t be easy. In Belgium’s case, for its current golden generation, it may very well be its last chance to bring home a title. Both sides are very good at the attack. Portugal may hold an advantage as far as defense goes, but no doubt they face a major challenge with Belgium’s brilliant attack form. Seeing Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Diogo Jota, and Renato Sanches square off against Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, and Kevin De Bruyne increases the excitement.
Entering the tournament loaded with talent and as an overwhelming favorite, England has not put up the best results although they finished their group with two wins and a draw. Harry Kane, the Captain of the English National Team has yet to make an impact. If he fails to do so against Germany, England will be out. However, England must win as a team. In Germany’s case, they have nothing to lose. If anything, they’re more focused, driven, and motivated than ever. It’s safe to say that England comes into this game under tremendous pressure, which gives Die Mannschaft the upper hand. Germany’s attack trio of Leroy Sané, Kai Havertz, and Serge Gnabry need to step it up. Thomas Müller and Timo Werner need to step it up, as well. Regardless of who starts for Germany, everyone needs to be ready to go. The same goes for England.
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The favorites of these two matches have to be Belgium and Germany. For England and Portugal, they do come into the Round of 16 under pressure. For Portugal, they’ve done well under pressure before and can certainly do it again. Despite finishing third in their group, Portugal can’t be taken lightly and Belgium knows that.
For England, playing under pressure has never done them any good. Germany is under pressure, as well. However, the difference is that Germany can play well and win while under pressure. Long story short, Germany can handle pressure while England simply can’t. Therefore, Die Mannschaft is the favorite. Regardless, there’s no counting England out.
Portugal and Belgium square off this Sunday. Germany and England will play next Tuesday. Both games are perfectly capable of going either way.
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