Who Will Win the Nations League Odds?

Two years after winning the 2018 World Cup, France head into the 2020/21 Nations League as the favourites to lift yet another trophy.

There is no debate that France’s squad is of a standard nobody else can match, with an unrivalled mix of elite youngsters and experienced winners like Kylian Mbappe, Antione Griezmann and Paul Pogba and Dayot Upamecano to name just a few.

As well as this, Les Bleus have incredible squad depth in every single position across the pitch, so much so, that Manchester United's 2019/20 top scorer, Anthony Martial, can't secure a starting role.

It isn't all plain sailing for France, however, with defending champions Portugal also in their group, and it's important to remember that only one out of the four competing teams in each group qualify for the semi-finals.

However, France's odds of lifting the Nations League trophy are now priced at 4/1, following two wins from two in Group 3 of League A.

One side who have competed but underachieved in recent times is Belgium, who sit in Group 2 of League A.

The Red Devils beat England in the 2018 World Cup third-place play-offs after a defeat to France in the semi-finals and this 'golden generation' of footballers from Belgium is nearing its expiration date.

So far in the Nations League, Belgium have won all their games and have suffered minimal squad departures due to injury or illness. However, with the likes of Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne edging closer to 30, perhaps and/or the Euro's in the summer is the only time we will finally see this nation rise to the top.

If they are to progress, they would likely still have to face France, a fixture in which the Belgian's have won twice out of 10 attempts at major competitions since the inaugural World Cup in 1938. There is also the factor in getting past England in Group 2, who despite looking poor in their opening two games, remain a serious threat within Europe ahead of Euro 2021.

Currently, Belgium’s odds of winning the Nations League are priced at 5/1.

There is no doubt that England have made movements within Europe in recent years, but their semi-finals defeats at both the World Cup and the Nations League show there is still plenty a pieces left in this complex jigsaw.

Gareth Southgate has lifted the countries moral and hopes as they finished fourth in the 2018 World Cup, and ultimately, the squad seem more content to represent the Three Lions. Now, with the England squad producing some of the world's best young talent such as Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden, Mason Greenwood and Jadon Sancho, the English remain a threat to anyone.

In this Nations League so far, England have gained four points out of a possible six, although they lost large numbers of first-team players before these fixtures. With the upcoming games approaching, many of the illegible players like Harry Maguire, Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw, are now fit for the important Nations League clashes against Belgium and Denmark.

After two fixtures, England odds of lifting the Nations League trophy are currently priced at 6/1 and ultimately, their chances of advancing practically remain on whether or not they can beat Belgium home and away.

The current leaders of Group A4 and favourites to top the group is Spain, who are one point clear after two games.

The Spanish have been a team that has struggled since they won their third consecutive tournament at Euro 2012. In four of their last major competitions, they failed to make it past the round of 16, and even crashed out in the groups of the 2014 World Cup and 2019 Nations League.

This year, Luis Enrique’s squad looks much more capable of going far in Nations League this year, with players like Thiago Alcantara, Fabian and Sergio Ramos in the side as well as the extremely talented youngster, Ansu Fati.

The Spanish are far from what they once were, but with two matches played in the competition so far, Spain’s odds of winning the Nations League this year are now priced at 6/1.

Ever since winning the 2006 World Cup, Italy have been a nation far, far from their usual self in both the domestic league front and with the national team. Despite a second-place finish at Euro 2012, the club crashed out of the group stages at the 2010 and 2014 World Cup and didn't even qualify for the 2018 finals in Russia.

In 2020, Roberto Mancini’s side have a more likely chance of adventuring past the group stages, as they defeated last season’s finalist, the Netherlands. Although, getting further than that might be a struggle with the squad continuing to decline in recent years and many ageing players such as Giorgio Chiellini, still featuring in the starting lineup.

Now, with just Ciro Immobile the only real threat, Mancini's much-improved squad still has a lot of work to do and Italy’s odds of lifting the Nations League trophy are now priced at 8/1.

After a shocking 2018 World Cup where they finished bottom of Group F, Germany are hoping to climb back to their former glory with a Nations League triumph.

In this year's Nations League, Germany have had a nervous start with draws against Spain and Switzerland. After the first fixtures, Joachim Low has announced his latest squad with Manuel Neuer back in the TEAM and players of Toni Kroos, Kai Havertz and Serge Gnabry all set to start. Although, many of their stronger players such as Leroy Sane and Ilkay Gundogan, have been ruled out of the upcoming fixtures.

In truth, Germany's side is far from what it once was, but with Bayern Munich's dominance in 2020, players like Thomas Muller, Gnabry, Sane, Joshua Kimmich and others can't be overlooked.

On paper, Germany’s squad is getting back to its former self, however, they remain far from the power shown in their 2014 World Cup win - the four-time world champions are now priced at 10/1 to win the Nations League.

The current reigning champions of the Nations League, Portugal, are top of their group tied on six points with France.

In recent years, Portugal have been on top of Europe as they won the inaugural Nations League as well as the Euro 2016, defeating France on their home turf. However, in the 2018 World Cup, it wasn’t as impressive as they were eliminated in the round of 16 to Uruguay, and in truth, it looks as if this Portugal side have been testing their luck throughout both European triumphs.

The 2020/21 Nations League looks to be another positive tournament for Portugal, however, it may not be all it seems. Without Ronaldo, the squad looks average at best, despite many star players like Joao Felix, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva, with Rui Patricio the only notable name in the backline.

Currently, Portugal’s odds of lifting the Nations League trophy are priced at 10/1.