Austria v Scotland betting tips: Injury woes for Clarke
Austria v Scotland betting tips and odds
Scotland bounced back from their World Cup qualifying defeat by Denmark with a 1-0 victory over Moldova at the weekend but they face a crucial match against play-off rivals Austria on Tuesday night.
Steve Clarke welcomed back a handful of absentees for the 1-0 victory at Hampden Park but he has lost three players ahead of this match for which they are 15/4 outsiders.
These teams are seemingly involved in a three-way battle with Israel for second spot so let’s examine the markets and odds in our Austria v Scotland betting tips.
Match Odds
Nathan Patterson, Kevin Nisbet, Jack Hendry, John McGinn, Ryan Christie and match-winner Lyndon Dykes were all in the starting line-up on Saturday.
But Patterson, Ryan Fraser and Kenny McLean have all pulled out with injury, so Paul McGinn has been added to the squad.
Clarke will need to shuffle his pack once again for the clash with Austria, who are 4/5 favourites despite losing 5-2 in Israel.
Scotland twice came from behind in their home fixture against Austria in March when McGinn’s spectacular free-kick secured a 2-2 draw and another share of the spoils can be backed at 23/10 while goals at both ends in this market is 15/4.
Tonight was all about the 3 points. A special night for me getting my 50th cap for this country 💙 it was great having you all back in Hampden! 🏴 pic.twitter.com/DKfSBfxCNt
— Andy Robertson (@andrewrobertso5) September 4, 2021
The Scots are a point ahead of Austria and two behind Israel, who travel to Denmark on the same evening, so a win could see the visitors move up to second in the Group F table.
However, they only had Dykes’ 14th-minute tap-in to show for their efforts against Moldova and will have to improve their finishing which has yielded just two goals in their last five matches.
That said, the goals flowed in March so both teams to score is evens and we can add over 2.5 goals at 6/5 to our Austria v Scotland betting tips.
Considering how important this match is, both teams to score, over 2.5 goals and either team to win looks an interesting prospect at 15/8 while Scotland to win or draw is available at 19/20 in the double chance market.
Talking Tactics
Clarke was able to select a much more balanced team for Saturday’s match in which he deployed a 3-4-1-2 formation.
Kieran Tierney played on the left of a back three and Andrew Robertson on the same side in midfield but injuries to Patterson and Fraser mean at least two changes are required for the game in Vienna.
Austria played five at the back in Haifa and were 3-0 down after 33 minutes and although superb goals from Christoph Baumgartner and Marko Arnautovic got them back into the game, a great strike from Shon Weissman and Eran Zahavi’s second in stoppage time sealed victory for the hosts.
Franco Foda played a 4-4-2 in Glasgow but he is without key midfielder Marcel Sabitzer who has an adductor problem.
Goalscorer Odds
Arnautovic’s sensational left-footed strike into the top corner proves he has lost none of his goalscoring instincts following his move from China to Bologna.
The former West Ham striker is the 7/2 favourite to get the ball rolling and 6/4 to score at any time while Baumgartner is 7/1 and 3/1 in the equivalent markets.
For Scotland, Dykes is 15/2 and 16/5 and Nisbet is 8/1 and 10/3 while McGinn is 10/1 and 4/1 in our Austria v Scotland betting tips.
Match Info
Where: Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna
When: 19:45, Tuesday 7th September
How to watch: Sky Sports
View the latest World Cup qualification odds
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication