UEFA Nations League: Pacesetting Hungary Head to Germany

Germany vs Hungary

UEFA Nations League action comes to the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig on Friday when highly-fancied Germany take on the Group A3 leaders Hungary.   

The UEFA Nations League 2022 betting odds have Germany as third favourites to win the tournament at odds of 6.00, with only the Netherlands and Spain rated higher.

Meanwhile, Hungary are an outside bet at a price of 26.00 and are at SBOTOP odds of 5.00 to win Group A3. But as we stand, the Magyars are proudly at the top of the group on seven points ahead of Germany on six.

Both teams come to the game on the back of a brilliant win. Germany thumped Roberto Mancini’s Italy 5-2, while Hungary stunned England at Wembley with a 4-0 rout to take them top of the pile and dump the Three Lions into bottom place.

That Magyar victory was one of the most impressive UEFA Nations League 2022 results of the campaign so far and Marco Rossi’s side will be hoping for a repeat on Friday. They can’t realistically expect the same scoreline but another positive result is well within their capability.   

In the other Group A3 clash, Italy play England and the Azzurri, in third place with five points, will be hoping for a draw in Leipzig.   

Talking Points

High expectations in Germany

At a price of 1.66 to win the group, Germany are fully expected to make it through to the next phase and the pre-match odds of 1.24 puts all the pressure on the hosts to deliver.

Head coach Hansi Flick has overseen a steady set of results in 2022, starting with a 2-0 win over Israel and finishing with that comfortable victory over Italy.

But in between, the Germans have played out four 1-1 draws against Netherlands, Italy, England and Hungary.  

Jonas Hofmann, Timo Werner, and Joshua Kimmich all have two goals in this competition. Werner got both his in the victory over Italy, while Kimmich’s FC Bayern team-mate Serge Gnabry has weighed in with two assists.

FC Bayern lost to Augsburg last weekend to see the end of the Bavarians’ unbeaten run, and those two players will be feeling the Bundesliga pressure as the champions slip to fifth place and five points off the pace.

But we can expect them both to feature on Friday, alongside Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan, and there we see enough firepower to see off most opponents.

Hungary’s Red Bull contingent on home soil  

Magyar coach Rossi will be hoping his team can rise to the occasion and there will be plenty of encouragement for three of his players who ply their trade with RB Leipzig. 

Midfield ace Dominik Szoboszlai will be one of those players at home in the Red Bull Arena while goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi is also a Leipzig man.

But the player who will relish the clash with Germany, and particularly Red Bull buddy Timo Werner the most, is the tough tackling centre-back Willi Orban. The other man to watch is skipper Adam Szalai, an attacking midfielder who has scored 25 goals from 84 games and leads from the front.

Of course Hungary will be full of confidence after inflicting the biggest defeat on England in 94 years, so this will be a great watch for fans of both teams and the neutrals.

History

While Germany are four-time World Champions, with the last occasion in 2014, Hungary’s golden era was some time ago. They were one of the best teams on the planet for two decades, reaching the World Cup final in 1938 and again in 1954.

The head-to-heads have been well-contested with Germany winning two, drawing two, and losing one of the last five encounters with Hungary.

When the two teams met in June, Germany came back to draw 1-1 thanks to a Hofmann equaliser after Zsolt Nagy had given Hungary a surprise lead.  

In terms of recent form, Hungary have had more wins in the last six games, with three victories, one draw, and two losses.

But the Germans are unbeaten in six, winning two and drawing four. In fact, Flick’s team is unblemished in 13 matches and unbeaten in eight on home soil.

Betting Tip

With the draw at 5.22 and an away win at 10.12, there is plenty of value for Hungary fans and the neutrals who were so impressed by the way they dismantled England.

Can they do it again? Only time will tell. But they will give it a good go and I’m expecting more goals and, for an alternative bet, 3-1 to Germany is available at 8.68.

 

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