Euro U21 Championship: Netherlands to plunder again

9Jun 2013

Betfair

The Netherlands U21 staked a huge claim with victory in their opener, forcing Germany to pursue a positive result against favourites Spain...

Netherlands U21 v Russia U21, Sunday 17:00, Sky Sports 2, Match Odds: Netherlands U21 1.75, Russia U21 5.2, The Draw 3.75

The future is bright; the future is orange to coin a well-known advertising slogan. This young Dutch squad would have been delighted to slip under the radar ahead of this tournament and duly delivered the goods by beating much-fancied Germany 3-2, courtesy of a dramatic winner from Leroy Fer.

Unsurprisingly, that fantastic start has witnessed the Jong Oranje's price for glory shorten into 5.2.

One thing this Dutch team are not short of is goals. The 2006 and 2007 champions of this competition have now averaged 3.5 goals per game in their last six competitive outings.

Best Bet: Back over 2.5 goals @ 1.91
Other Recommended Bet: Back Netherlands U21 to score three or more goals @ 3.75

Germany U21 v Spain U21, Sunday 19:30, Sky Sports 2, Match Odds: Germany U21 3.85 v Spain U21 2.04, The Draw 3.55

Given the side's differing fortunes in their opening games, the onus is most certainly with Germany in this clash of the pre-tournament favourites.

The odds in Germany's favour are not great having only beaten their Spanish counterparts once in their previous five competitive meetings but such obstacles will have to be overcome if they are to progress.

Their cause will be aided by the news that influential Spanish midfielder Sergio Canales has been ruled out for the rest of the tournament due to a hamstring injury.

Meanwhile, fears over the fitness of their own star forward Peniel Mlapa have since been allayed, with the African-born player expected to be passed fit after leaving the field early against the Dutch. If Germany are to win, they'll have to do something only two teams have done against the imperious holders since the start of qualifying and that's score a goal.

Luckily for them, this has not been an issue - given the 43 they put away in qualifying. Neither side started well in the first game, with their three combined goals all coming in the second half.