Euro 2020 Qualifying Semifinals Path A Odds & Previews: Iceland vs Romania and Bulgaria vs Hungary

• The battling Nordic islanders look to reach finals on Thursday at 2:45 PM  EST after a memorable Euro 2016 
• Hungarians hope to build on shock after recent win over Turkey when they met struggling Bulgaria
• See all odds and best bets for Path A of the Euro 2020 semifinal qualifying

The delayed qualification playoffs for the Euro 2020 begin this week with the final tournament scheduled for next year.

Sixteen teams contest the semifinals in four separate pathways with four tournament spots up for grabs in the playoff finals in November. Path A includes Iceland against Romania and Bulgaria against Hungary.

Pick 1: Iceland vs Romania

Iceland hopes they can draw inspiration from their memorable trip to Euro 2016 as they begin their attempt to reach the finals against Romania on Thursday.

However, the Nordic island nation must recover after two consecutive losses since the resumption of international football including a 5-1 thrashing by Belgium last time out in September.

Euro 2020 Playoff Iceland vs Romania Odds

All odds taken on Oct 6 at bet365.

The Romanians will travel to Reykjavik at 2:45 PM EST as slight underdogs but with their spirits lifted by a notable 3-2 win in Austria in their last  fixture – their best result in six years.

At bet365, the oddsmakers rate Iceland as favorites for a win at +150 with their visitors at +187 and the draw at +220.

After reaching their first major tournament at the European Championships four years ago, they scored a historic 2-1 win against  England in the last 16.

They then qualified for their first World Cup in Russia in 2018 although they exited at the group stage.

They had a tough draw in the current UEFA Nations League and were beaten 1-0 at home by England before the 5-1 thrashing in Belgium last month.

Kolbein Sigborsson of Swedish club AIK has scored six times in Iceland’s last 11 Euro qualifiers at home.

However, led by players such as captain and midfielder Birkir Bjarnasson of Italy’s Brescia, they will be determined to re-kindle the achievements of recent tournaments.

Kolbein Sigborsson of Swedish club AIK has scored six times in Iceland’s last 11 Euro qualifiers at home.

OFFICIAL: Arsenal sign Iceland keeper Runar Alex Runarsson ✍️ pic.twitter.com/PClB71pS23

— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 21, 2020

Romania have been lifted by their 3-2 win in Austria and by the 1-1 draw at home against Northern Ireland in the Nations League four days earlier last month.

George Puscas of Reading scored against Northern Ireland and could be a threat in Reykjavik.

Those results have marked a recovery from their previous fixture – a 5-0 hammering by Spain in the Euro qualifiers on which the Romanians finished fourth in their group. Their only wins were against the tiny Faroe Island and Malta.

Romania and Iceland have met twice before in the qualifying competition for the 1998 World Cup – with the Romanians winning 4-0 on both occasions.

Pick: Iceland +150

Pick 2: Bulgaria vs Hungary

Bulgaria will be hoping to beat the odds and reach their first European Championships finals since 2004 as they head into a playoff semifinal against Hungary at 2:45 PM EST on Thursday.

However, the Hungarians are favorites for a win at the Levski Stadium in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia after securing a surprise win in Turkey in the UEFA Nations League in September.

Euro 2020 Playoff Bulgaria vs Hungary Odds

At bet365, Hungary are priced at +110 to advance to a final against either Romania or Iceland.  Bulgaria are rated at +260 with the draw at +230.

In fact, Bulgaria have won just once in the last 16 matches.

Hungary were beaten 3-2 by an impressive Russian side in their last game in a Nations League match on September 6.

However, they at least showed impressive resolve to fight back with two second-half goals after they had fallen three goals behind inside 46 minutes.

They had secured their win against Turkey three days earlier thanks to an 80^th minute goal from teenaged Red Bull Salzburg midfielder Dominik Soboszlai.

Bulgaria’s only win in the last 16 games was a surprise 1-0 defeat of the Czech Republic last November.

In their final international of 2019, they had fallen 2-0 against Wales on the road, which meant they finished fourth in Euro qualifying Group E.

Bulgaria’s only win in the last 16 games was a surprise 1-0 defeat of the Czech Republic last November – their only victory in the Euro qualifying tournament’s Group A in which they finished fourth.

🇧🇬🆚🇭🇺This week is the most important for Bulgarian football in the last 16 years. Euro 2004 was the last tournament we qualified for and now we're two games away from making it to Euro 2020 (in 2021:). Yet bad luck has struck ahead of the Hungary playoff…

A THREAD👇 pic.twitter.com/zBnUL0ZGj0

— Metodi_Shumanov (@shumanskoo) October 5, 2020

They were even beaten 3-2 at home by Kosovo while also succumbing to a 6-0 home thrashing by England.

The only small credit they can claim is that they are difficult to score against, having conceded only four times in five games since England’s rampage in Sofia.

They lost 1-0 last time out in a Nations League Group B game against Wales in September.

Before that, they drew 1-1 against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin – and were denied a win only by Shane Duffy’s equalizer three minutes into added time.

There was a 1-1 draw in Hungary the last time they met Bulgaria in 2012.

Pick: Hungary +110