France vs. Austria Betting Tips: 10/11 & 21/1 plays for the Nations League clash in Paris

France take on Austria in the UEFA Nations League on Thursday evening, and after a three week break, @AnthonyEadson returns with a preview for the game, along with his best data-driven bets. 

This Nations League campaign has not gone well at all for Les Bleus who are facing the possibility of being relegated to League B. Austria currently sit third in League A Group 1, with Denmark in first and Ralf Rangnick’s side three points behind Croatia in second. 

A win here for Austria would relegate France, however safety is not yet confirmed for Das Team after going without a win in their last three in this competition. Austria will not be appearing at the World Cup in Qatar this winter and can therefore put all their energy into remaining in League A. 

France have a lengthy list of absentees for this game including Lucas Digne, Theo Hernandez, Adrien Rabiot, Hugo Lloris, Lucas Hernandez, Presnel Kimpembe, N’Golo Kante, Karim Benzema and Kingsley Coman. 

Ralf Rangnick also has injury worries of his own with Konrad Laimer being ruled out for several months. Wolves’ Sasa Kalajdzic is another long-term absentee, with defender Martin Hinteregger having retired after it came out he had strong links with a far-right extremist.

I’ve picked out two selections for this Nations League clash which both centre around Austrian forward Marko Arnautovic. With their usual number nine Sasa Kalajdzic out injured, Arnautovic should take up the role of the main forward for Rangnick’s side and the first pick I’m touting is for the former West Ham player to have at least one shot on target at the generous looking price of 10/11.

Last season the 33 year-old recorded an average of 1.07 shots on target per 90 minutes in Serie A for his employers Bologna and has started this season at a similar ratio with eight in seven appearances. I think there’s a real case to be made for Austria taking something from this game based on France being winless in their four matches so far this campaign. In total, Didier Deschamps’ side have taken just two points from a possible 12, with 1-1 draws against Croatia, and Thursday evening’s opponents Austria. 

Combined with poor form in this competition, France also have a long list of injuries for this game and will be missing some of their key men, such as Karim Benzema, Kingsley Coman, and N'Golo Kante. At just under even money Arnautovic looks an attractive bet and should take up the prominent attacking role for his national side at the Stade de France, with other firms such as BetVictor going just 11/20 on the same selection.

I’ll also be having a little nibble on Marko Arnautovic to score and be carded in the match, which is currently available at a best price of 21/1 with Paddy Power. It’s been a fantastic start to the season over in Italy for ‘Arnie’ with six goals in seven league outings for Bologna which makes him the current top scorer in the division. After 14 league goals last season Arnautovic is aging like a fine wine and there’s also a chance he will be on penalty duty should his side be awarded one.

In his seven league appearances so far, Arnautovic has found the net in five of those. A player known for his physicality and being difficult to play against, he has also been shown a yellow card in two of those five in which he has scored. With this in mind, I feel quotes of 21/1 are reasonable for a player with a proven disciplinary record. 

Best of luck to anyone following. Please gamble responsibly.