The second round of group matches conclude with Saturday’s fixtures, as DraftKings managers look to construct eight-man squads from the remaining six nations.
Over in Group E, Belgium are left scrapping for survival following their abject display in the defeat to Italy. They must now find a way past the Republic of Ireland who head into that encounter having earned a point in their opener against Sweden.
Belgium must surely seek a victory, which should lead to a more open affair, drawing the sting from the attacking talent on show. Belgium’s teamsheet looks difficult to predict, however, with DraftKings managers having to shop late should they look to Belgium for goals.
There are two matches in Group F with Austria facing an identical scenario to the Belgians. They suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of Hungary and now head into an enthralling clash with Portugal. Fernando Santos’ men were held by Iceland, with Cristiano Ronaldo contained; they cannot afford to be similarly subdued against the Austrians.
Iceland take their point earned against Portugal into their meeting with Hungary in what looks set to be a cagey affair. The Hungarians can seal passage to the knock-outs with a victory, although Iceland’s disciplined rearguard is likely to be in evidence once again.
We’ve studied the likely narrative of the three fixtures and sifted the assets on offer to provide our DraftKings picks to help steer your selections ahead of Saturday’s contests.
Vierinha – Portugal, – $4400
Deployed as a winger in his Porto days, he’s now recognised as a talented right-back for Wolfsburg and his country. Vierinha came through Portugal’s disappointing performance against Iceland with some credit, raiding down the flank to provide 12 crosses, 10 of which came from open play. Along with Raphael Guerreiro on the left, we expect his service from the flanks to be a factor again in the crunch meeting with Austria.
Nani – Portugal, $9300
While Ronaldo registered ten efforts on goal against Iceland, nine were from outside the box, leaving it to Nani to provide the most potent threat. He notched Portugal’s goal and all five of his goal attempts arrived from inside the penalty area, with three hitting the target. With four crosses supplied, Nani enjoyed a profitable evening and will head into the clash with Austria looking to emerge from Ronaldo’s shadow once more.
David Alaba – Austria – $7500
The Bayern Munich man did his upmost to drag Austria through their defeat to Hungary. He fired in six efforts on goal in the 2-0 defeat – no other midfielder registered more goal attempts in the first round of matches. That continued the trend seen in qualifying when Alaba, deployed as a box-to-box midfielder, provided more goal attempts per minute than any team-mate, whilst also ranking second for crosses. Alaba will surely be a key figure as Austria seek to salvage their Euro 2016 campaign.
Attila Fiola – Hungary, – $4000
Iceland mustered just four efforts on goal against Portugal and, while they could show more ambition against the Hungarian’s, investment in the Magyar back-line looks viable. Fiola just edges out fellow full-back Tamas Kadar in our reckoning as he demonstrated more intent to get forward from right-back, both in the win over Austria and in the warm-up matches heading into the tournament. Fiola also tends to win more tackles and played as a striker in his youth, so could even deliver an unlikely goal.
Robbie Brady – Republic of Ireland, – $5000
A mainstay of our Premier League DraftKings line-ups, Brady continues to translate his impressive points output to the international stage. The Norwich City man contributed ten crossed balls in the 1-1 stalemate with Sweden, continuing a trend that saw him supply 93 crosses in qualifying – ranking third for midfielders overall. Classified as defender in DraftKings, his supply line looks pivotal to the Republic of Ireland’s chances against Belgium, with set-pieces likely to play their part.
DraftKings contests for Saturday’s matches are now available, including a $3 entry “Striker” with a $10k prize pot.
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