Belgium vs Romania prediction and betting tips - June 22, 2024
On Saturday evening, the final match of the second round of the European Championship group stage will be played in Cologne between Belgium and Romania. Here is a prediction for this match from the Dailysports expert team.
Belgium
The Belgian team unpleasantly surprised at the World Cup in Qatar when they failed to advance from the group stage. Nevertheless, the "Red Devils" breezed through the qualifiers as usual, hardly noticing their opponents. However, the team has changed significantly.
In the past, this team boasted players from top clubs like Real Madrid, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, PSG, or Milan and Napoli. Now, the players come from teams of a completely different caliber, and most have not had consistent playing time.
As a result, despite being the clear favorites of their group, Belgium managed to lose to Slovakia in the first round. Although the Belgians scored twice, both of Lukaku's goals were disallowed by the referees. Thus, the match against Romania becomes almost a must-win for the team.
Romania
The Romanian team was unfairly considered the underdog of the group by many. Yet, the Romanians performed admirably in the qualifiers, surpassing a very strong Swiss team. Perhaps the main reason for this perception was their lackluster results in matches against Liechtenstein and Bulgaria, where the "Tricolors" failed to score a single goal.
However, the Romanians broke through in their first-round clash with Ukraine. Sergey Rebrov's team dominated possession, but couldn't create any truly dangerous chances. Then came a blunder in the Ukrainian penalty area, leading to Matviyenko and Lunin conceding the first goal.
Ukraine tried to get back into the game in the second half, but soon the Romanians scored another fluke goal, shocking the "Yellow and Blues." The Romanian team fully capitalized on this and secured a resounding 3-0 victory, which certainly boosted their confidence ahead of the match with the group's favorites.
Interesting facts about the match and head-to-head history
- Romania and Belgium have not played against each other for nearly 12 years. Their last encounter was in November 2012, when Romania defeated Belgium 2-1 in a friendly match.
- Three out of the five matches between these teams ended with a score of 2-1.
- Prior to their loss to Slovakia, Belgium had gone 15 matches unbeaten.
Belgium vs Romania Prediction
Bookmakers favor Belgium, giving the team very modest odds of 1.49. We believe the match will not be an easy walk for the "Red Devils." Our bet is "Romania to win with a handicap (+1.5)" with odds of 1.65.
