UEFA Nations League Odds & Picks – Sept 8 – Denmark vs England, Sweden vs Portugal & France vs Croatia

• The new 2020-21 UEFA Nations League is underway and we’re now on Matchday 2
• On Tuesday, September 8, there are eight games in leagues A, C, and D
• See all the odds for Tuesday’s games and we’ll preview three, offering a best bet for each

The UEFA Nations League is back, with the first two rounds of games for the 2020-21 tournament spanning from Thursday, September 3 through to Tuesday, September 8. The format has been changed slightly with Leagues A, B and C now comprising for four groups of four teams, with League D being made up of one group of four and another of three.

We’ll list eight of the games scheduled for Tuesday, September 8, show the odds, preview three, and offer a pick for each.

UEFA Nations League Odds – September 8th

All odds taken Sept. 7th.

Pick 1: Denmark vs England

England’s narrow win over Iceland was earned the hard way, with Raheem Sterling’s late strike being closely followed by a missed penalty for the hosts. But it was three points, and a win in Denmark at the Parken Stadium will put Gareth Southgate’s men in charge of the group ahead of their October clash at Wembley against Belgium.

A busy day to come 👊

The #ThreeLions will train in Iceland this morning before making the trip to Copenhagen in preparation for tomorrow's #NationsLeague clash with Denmark. pic.twitter.com/ExgaMd2MEY

— England (@England) September 7, 2020

The visitors will be without Man City defender Kyle Walker, who was sent off in Iceland, but will still be confident of a win after Denmark’s underwhelming showing in Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat by Belgium, who were themselves not at full strength. As ever, key for the hosts will be the form of Inter Milan’s Christian Eriksen, and if he can influence the game and link up with Martin Braithwaite and Yussuf Poulsen, the Danes could cause England problems.

Disciplinary problems in the England camp may affect their preparation – Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood have been left out of the squad for misdemeanors in Reykjavik – and despite being player-for-player better than Denmark, their struggle to get past Iceland indicates a team that isn’t yet up to speed. For that reason, I see value here in the draw.

Pick: Denmark & England to draw (+250)

Pick 2: Sweden vs Portugal

Sweden welcome the current European champions to the Friends Arena in Stockholm, after losing in the same stadium to the World champions on the weekend. They were unlucky against France though, with Le Bleus’ keeper Hugo Lloris needing to be at his best to earn his team the three points. The only goal of the game, from Kylian Mbappé, came from France’s only shot on target and so a similarly stubborn display from the Swedes against the Portuguese could be enough to see them earn something from this game.

Portugal, meanwhile, were comfortable 4-1 home winners over World Cup finalists Croatia, even minus the services of Cristiano Ronaldo – who was nursing the effects of a bee sting – but they will find things tougher in Stockholm.

It’s possible that Ronaldo may play a part on Tuesday night but given how well Sweden played against France, I’m going big here and predicting a surprise home win. At +390, this is definitely worth a punt, especially with the Portuguese being less effective away from home.

Pick: Sweden to win (+390) 

Pick 3: France vs Croatia

Les Bleus kicked off their Nations League campaign with the aforementioned 1-0 win in Sweden, but it was a struggle. To have scored with their only on-target shot of the game and to have had to rely on Lloris’ brilliance to keep their lead intact tells the story of another team that is not yet up to speed.

But, against a Croatia team that struggled horribly in Porto, especially at the back, the French still look likely to get another win under their belt. The Croatians will again be without their two big names, Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, and so while the French will also be without Paul Pogba, they should have more than enough to see off their Eastern European visitors.  There is some value in the -125 for the home win but, for me, there’s even more in the 2-0 home win.

Pick: France to win 2-0 (+575)