Tuesday’s Euro 16 programme will conclude the first round of group matches as Group F takes a bow, giving DraftKings managers a complete preview of all 24-qualfying nations.
Portugal’s evening clash with Iceland will offer a first look at Cristiano Ronaldo’s form – surely a key factor in the tournament and our DraftKings thinking throughout.
Earlier in the day, Austria will look to uphold their status as dark horses with a convincing opening display against Hungary.
We’ve put the four squads under the microscope, boiling things down to a choice collection of players we feel will be crucial to success in Tuesday’s DraftKings contests.
Matchday 5 Player Picks
Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal – $12,800
While Portugal have a wealth of emerging young talent, there’s no question that they remain heavily reliant on Ronaldo’s form to steer them through the tournament. With 51 goals from 48 appearances for Real Madrid last season, Ronaldo is simply the archetypal goal machine. He fired five vital goals in qualifying and has followed this up with three strikes in Portugal’s warm-up matches, including a brace in the recent 7-0 demolition of Estonia. Ronaldo appears to be fit and firing and that’s really all we need to know.
Christian Fuchs, Austria – $5900
A full-back seemingly tailor-made for our eight-man squads. Fuchs arrives in France off the back of a hugely impressive campaign for Leicester City and with numbers on the international stage to suggest he can replicate that form. He ranked third for crossed balls within the Austrian ranks in qualifying and topped their charts for tackles won and interceptions.
Zlato Junozovic, Austria – $7400
While Fuchs is a supply line from the left, Junozovic is Austria’s chief architect from the number ten role. Crucially, he’s also a dead-ball specialist which will see him hog corners and free-kicks. The main source of crossed balls and fouls won in qualifying, the Werder Bremen man also mustered 27 goal attempts and has maintained that form in the friendly matches since, claiming two goals and an assist.
Gylfi Sigurdsson, Iceland – $7600
While Iceland may struggle to silence Ronaldo, in Sigurdsson they have their own potential match winner, capable over hovering up a big DraftKings tally. Sigurdsson’s club form for Swansea City saw him involved in 41% of their goals and that influence is mirrored for his national side having notched six goals in qualifying. The playmaker will claim set-pieces and is the top provider of crosses in the Iceland ranks, whilst also contributing their most potent goal threat.
Ari Skulason, Iceland – $3800
Converted from a midfield role to left-back by his country, the fiery Skulason offers a willing attacking outlet down the flank which could harvest strong DraftKings returns. He started all ten qualifiers, registering three assists and ranking second behind Sigurdsson for crossed balls.
Balazs Dzsudzsak, Hungary – $6900
Hungary’s potential of making an impression in the tournament rely on the form and productivity of Dzsudzsak. The Bursaspor winger contributed some outstanding numbers in qualifying that make him the go-to option for our squads. He supplied more crossed balls than any other player, creating 25 goalscoring opportunities for team-mates and amassed 39 efforts on goal. Dzsudzsak has maintained that supply line in Hungary’s pre-tournament warm-ups, although it remains to be seen if he can produce on the big stage.
DraftKings contests for Tuesday’s matches are now available, including a $3 entry “Striker” with a $8k prize pot.
DraftKings is available only to those aged 18 or over. Be sure to take note of their Terms and Conditions here.
