Euro 2024: Belgium x Romania, Match Preview, Odds, Team News and Predictions(22/06/2024)

Belgium plays Romania in their second group game at RheinEnergieStadion, looking to bounce back after a humiliating 1-0 defeat to Slovakia. Despite their disappointing start to EURO 2024, the Red Devils are still seen as solid favourites to defeat Romania in Koln. 

Despite missing a pair of obvious scoring chances against Slovakia, AS Roma forward Romelu Lukaku should continue to play up front, while PSV winger Johan Bakayoko is vying for a starting role. One yellow card separates Mangala, Tielemans, and Lukebakio from suspension.

But the Tricolorii will have a mountain to climb in their second group game, even if they performed very well to destroy Ukraine in their first game of the European Championship. Home victory should be considered since Belgium's best players will give it their all on the pitch this time. Edward Iordanescu's squad has no new injury concerns.

Belgium x Romania Republic Team News

With no injuries to worry about, Domenico Tedesco is predicted to start the same lineup that played against Slovakia. Though Belgium did not score, Kevin de Bruyne is sure his side will score against Romania.

Edward Iordanescu is expected to assemble the same lineup he used against Ukraine. While Tottenham's Radu Dragusin stopped La Liga's top scorer, Artur Dovbyk, against Ukraine, the Romanian defender must do even better against Belgium's all-time leading scorer, Romelu Lukaku.

Captain Nicusor Stanciu will also want to repeat his outstanding performance against Ukraine when he scored a fantastic goal with a flawless outside-the-box strike. The Romanian ace is expected to score his second goal of the competition even though he will play against elite opponents.

Head To Head And Previous Matches

Although Belgium had a fantastic run without losing since November 2022 at the Qatar World Cup, when they lost to Morocco (2-0) in the group stage and were eliminated early from the tournament, the same situation existed at the beginning of Euro 2024. 

Although the Red Devils were expected to win the group and go on to the knockout stage easily, Slovakia beat Lukaku and company in the first round.

Nevertheless, Slovakia won the game 1-0 after the whistle, even though they dominated it from beginning to end. More so, Belgium's inability to keep its concentration throughout the whole match resulted in a disastrous error made by Jeremy Doku of Manchester City. 

After seven minutes of play, the Belgian winger dribbled in his area and passed poorly, allowing Ivan Schranz to score from close range and give their campaign a flawless start with a stunning victory against Belgium.

Still, the Red Devils scored twice in a game when they performed at their best, but VAR checks rejected both goals. While the first goal was disqualified for obvious offside, the second was thrown out after a contentious ruling from a handball.

Any other outcome than a victory over Group leaders Romania in their last two games might see Belgium unexpectedly eliminated from the Euro 2024 competition. Though Belgium lost to Slovakia in the first game, they may still go to the next round by using the third-place qualifying slot even if they lose against Romania.

Romania proved their qualification for the Euro 2024 as group champions in the first game against Ukraine, which surprised many. Even though Tricolori was considered the underdog against a star-studded Ukrainian team, the guests stunned the Euros with a masterclass performance.

The visitors lost one game over this period, a friendly test against Colombia, continuing their remarkable streak that began in late November 2022. Romania had been out of the big tournaments for an unsatisfactory eight years, but their run saw them rising in the FIFA rankings.

Romania must be fully conscious of this risky situation even if Edward Iordanescu's squad is in a solid position to advance in the knockout round after Belgium's defeat to Slovakia. 

If Belgium beats Romania and Ukraine wins against Slovakia, it is also possible for all teams in this Group to have the same amount of points (3) after the second round.

But after playing a master lesson against Ukraine, with almost no errors at the back and perfect precision up forward, Romania is anticipated to cause another considerable shock here. Moreover, the Romanian team, who stunned Serhiy Rebrov's side despite being given a 4/1 chance to win, seemed to profit from their underdog position.

Our Predictions

Belgium to win @1.48 on Sky247.ng

Belgium can demonstrate their Euro 2024 winning potential by routing Romania in Group E on Saturday.

Expected goals estimated Belgium's quality of chances produced to be about three times that of their opponents, making the Red Devils' 1-0 loss to Slovakia on Monday the least equitable outcome of the competition so far.

Ivan Schranz collected Jeremy Doku's terrible pass into his own penalty area and, after backheeling it to Juraj Kucka and seeing his ensuing shot saved by Koen Casteels, slammed home the rebound from a tight angle. Domenico Tedesco's side had 16 unsuccessful shots in the game.

Over 2.5 goals @1.72 on Sky247.ng

You can only win it all on a squad with creative players like Kevin De Bruyne and attacking threats like Romelu Lukaku and Leandro Trossard.

The Red Devils could even repeat their recent friendly victory of 3-0 against Luxembourg, having won three of their previous six games with at least one goal to spare.

Romania struggled to score in their two warm-up games for the final event and, with more excellent assistance from the opponent's defense and goalie, may find it easier to do so here.

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