Euro 2024: Belgium v Romania - Match Preview & Odds
Here at betting.bet we will deliver the latest team news, match insights and expert betting tips as well as up to date odds and free bet offers
Belgium and Romania meet in Group E of Euro 2024 on Saturday on the back of mightily contrasting starts to their tournaments earlier week. As we look ahead to this key fixture in Cologne, here at betting.bet we will deliver the latest team news, match insights and expert betting tips as well as up to date odds and free bet offers from our partners at BetMGM.
Match Day One Recap
Belgium went into Euro 2024 as one of the pre-tournament favourites but in the opening round of group stage they suffered a shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of Slovakia. The pre-match underdogs took the lead after just seven minutes and thanks to a couple of fortunate VAR decisions, held on for a famous victory.
Golden Boot contender Romelu Lukaku had two goals chalked off by VAR and despite achieving 60.4% possession as well as 16 shots on goals compared to Slovakia’s 10, Belgium could not claw back their opponents in Frankfurt.
In contrast, Romania kicked off Euro 2024 with a surprise 3-0 win over Ukraine in Munich. Romania had not won a match at a major international tournament for 24 years but made light work of the bookies’ pre-match favourites Ukraine. Nicolae Stanciu got the ball rolling on 29 minutes before second-half goals for Razvan Marin and Denis Dragus sealed all three points for Romania.
The match was a lot closer than indicated by the 3-0 scoreline and it was actually Ukraine that had the lion's share of possession with 71.3%. Ukraine also achieved more shots on goal with 13 compared to Romania’s 9. However, wasteful Ukraine could only record 2 shots on target whilst 5 of Romania’s 9 shots were on target.
Team News
Axel Witsel and Thomas Meunier are likely to remain absent for Belgium but experienced 154-cap defender Jan Vertonghen has declared himself fit and ready to play. Vertonghen could come in on the left-hand side for Yannick Carrasco after the latter endured a torrid time in an unfamiliar role at left-back against Slovakia.
Romanian boss Edward Iordanescu may be tempted to name an unchanged line up after their excellent win over Ukraine however there are reports that Valentin Mihaila will be recalled to the Romania starting XI. Mihaila was Romania’s joint-highest goalscorer in qualifying but illness prevented him from starting against Ukraine on Monday. The Parma winger did impress in a 30-minute cameo from the bench on Monday and could get the nod over Florinel Coman on the Romania left.
Predicted Line Ups
Belgium: Casteels, Castagne, Debast, Faes, Vertonghen, Tielemans, Onana, Doku, De Bruyne, Trossard, Lukaku
Romania: Nita, Ratiu, Dragusin, Burca, Bancu, R. Marin, M. Marin, Stanciu, Man, Dragus, Mihaila
Betting Tips
Suggestions that Romania’s win over Ukraine was a shock result is perhaps doing the Group E table toppers a disservice after a qualification campaign that saw them top their group without losing a single game. Whilst Belgium are deserved favourites, they are far too short to consider backing at 1/2.
Belgium cannot afford to allow Romania grow into the game on Saturday and in a tournament full of early goals we’re backing the Belgians to score within the first 36 minutes in Cologne at generous odds of 5/6.
Domenico Tedesco’s side continue to struggle with injuries at the back whilst they have a considerable amount of attacking talent at their disposal. The wise tactical option from the Belgians after Monday’s drab 1-0 defeat would be to go for broke on Saturday. Over 2.5 match goals looks a sure thing at 4/6 whilst we really like the look of the 27/20 on offer for Belgium to score in both halves.
Romelu Lukaku had plenty of opportunities to score on Monday but was thwarted by both Slovakia and VAR. An astonishing return of 85 goals in 116 internationals will ensure he receives plenty of support in the goalscorer markets once more on Saturday. Lukaku is 29/10 to score first or 17/20 to score at any time. However, with Belgium likely to come out firing, it may be worth backing Lukaku at 22/5 to score 2 or more.
Match Odds
| Belgium | Draw | Romania |
|---|---|---|
| 1/2 | 18/5 | 6/1 |
Predicted Match Result: Belgium 4-1 Romania (22/1)
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