In this article…
Belgium v Romania
📅
Kick Off: Saturday 22nd June at 20:00
📺
Watch Live: ITV1
🏆
Competition: Euro 2024
Group E’s surprise early pace setters Romania will be targeting their second scalp in the section when they take on an ailing Belgium at the Cologne Stadium on Saturday.
Don’t miss out on our daily shot on target predictions and foul betting tips here at Andy’s Bet Club to help you craft those value-packed bet builders this summer, using best bet builder bookmakers.
We will also be providing Euro 2024 betting predictions, Euro 2024 acca tips and both teams to score predictions to help your punting this summer.
We have also collated the very best Euro 2024 free bets & sign up offers to make sure you’re getting the best bang for your buck, which you can take full advantage of with the help of our expert football predictions. Feel free to analyse our Belgium v Romania bet builder tips ahead of the clash on Saturday.
Romania showed a clinical edge to capitalise on some generous Slovakian defending on matchday one (a 3-0 win) and they will need to be just as ruthless to profit in similar style against the Belgians.
Belgium have pride to restore and a Euro 2024 campaign to resuscitate following their unexpected 1-0 reverse against Slovakia and they will be desperate to avoid a second successive Group Stage exit at a major tournament.
Belgium v Romania Best Bets
Having badly underperformed against their xGF versus Slovakia, a wasteful-looking Belgium might be best ignored in the match result markets this weekend, especially with Romania looking so well-drilled defensively.
Instead, the player markets hold more promise and backing Kevin De Bruyne to have 3+ shots against The Tricolorii is an attractive option at 1.62.
Romania’s deep defensive position forced Ukraine into trying their luck from distance seven times on Monday and Belgium might have to adopt a similar approach. De Bruyne is a confident shooter from long range and he could match the three-shot haul he registered against Slovakia.
Elsewhere, determined Romania ball-winner Marius Marin has credentials in the over fouls market at 1.62 for 2+ fouls. The hard-working 25-year-old put in a big shift against Ukraine, attempting a game-high five tackles, and though he didn’t commit any fouls, that was a beak from the norm for the anchorman, who was a serial offender for his club Pisa last season.
Marin fouled at least twice in 15 different Serie B appearances for his club in 2023/24, at least three times in ten and four or more times in a further six of those contests.
With Domenico Tedesco’s Belgium likely to post a possession figure north of 65% against a defensively-orientated Romania, look for Les Diables Rouges to win over 5.5 corners in Cologne.
The Romanians conceded eight corners and had just 28.7% possession against Ukraine, and the pattern of the game is likely to be similar against Belgium.
📂 Belgium v Romania Cheat Sheet
There are so many ways to use our Cheat Sheets and we encourage you to find your own formula to pick a winning bet builder, however, if you’re unsure of how to use a Cheat Sheet, just click the link for some quick tips to help you make the most of it.
You can find Belgium v Romania match stats on my bet builder stats tool, along with official line-ups one hour before kick-off.
⚔️ Belgium v Romania Head-to-Head
Belgium and Romania last crossed paths in a friendly encounter 12 years ago when a Les Diables Rouges side featuring Jan Vertonghen, Axel Witsel, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku was beaten 2-1 in Bucharest.
We have to go all the way back to 1993 to find the last competitive clash between the sides, however, and on that occasion, Romania again emerged victorious following another 2-1 win, this time in a World Cup qualification group match.
In seven previous meetings between the nations overall since 1990, Belgium managed to win on only two occasions, while both teams managed to register in five of the same rendezvous.
Saturday’s fixture will be the first meeting between Belgium and Romania at a major tournament.
📊 Belgium Form and Stats
Drawn alongside three nations positioned 20th or lower in the FIFA rankings, Belgium had been tipped to breeze through Group E, however, their 1-0 loss on matchday one against Slovakia has cast a shadow of doubt on their prospects.
An early error from Jeremy Doku allowed Slovakia to break the deadlock after just seven minutes in Frankfurt and though Belgium had ample time to recover, they failed to do so, spurning several guilt-edged chances to equalize.
Belgium dominated 60.4% possession and clocked 16 shots to Slovakia’s ten, though Martin Dubravka’s reflexes and a couple of interventions from VAR combined to keep them off the scoresheet.
The Belgians were unable to capitalise on an xGF of 1.60 against The Falcons and Romelu Lukaku was the biggest chance-ruining villain, wasting a whopping 0.60 in xGF on his own – a figure that matched Slovakia’s entire xGF tally for the contest exactly.
Lukaku was denied twice by VAR, though the decision to disallow this 86th minute effort for a contentious handball in the build-up was particularly harsh, even if manager Domenico Tedesco refused to lambast the match officials after full time.
11 different Belgian players (including subs) committed at least one foul in the loss as their frustrations threatened to spill over, while Kevin De Bruyne, Leandro Trossard and Romelu Lukaku all had three shots each at goal without success.
Monday’s setback was Tedesco’s first loss in 15 games in charge of Belgium and the Italian coach might be tempted to make some changes to his XI in an attempt to rescue the situation. Lois Openda, Youri Tielemans and Johan Bakayoko – who had two shots as a late substitute against Slovakia – will all be pushing to start.
📊 Romania Form and Stats
In stark contrast to the Belgian mood, Romanian spirits could hardly be higher following their dream start against Ukraine on Monday. Powered by a perfectly executed gameplan, Romania roared to a 3-0 win in Munich, securing their biggest-ever victory at a major tournament in the process.
Head Coach Edward Iordanescu was effusive in his praise of the Romanian players in the post-match scrum, saying “If you had any doubts, I think you can believe me now that this is a great team” – and Romania have a chance to back up those claims against Belgium on Saturday.
Romania lost the shot count by nine to 13 against Ukraine, though they won the xFG battle (1.10-0.70) after their committed defending restricted the Ukrainians to half chances and speculative efforts. Indeed, seven of Ukraine’s 13 shots were hit from outside the box, while six of their strikes were blocked.
Set up in a superbly-drilled 4-1-4-1 formation, Romania’s four-man backline was ably screened by holding midfielder Marius Marin, who attempted five tackles and made two interceptions against Ukraine.
Romania were happy to cede possession on Monday and saw just 28.7% of the ball while sitting in a low block and Belgium will have to work hard to pick their way through that robust rearguard in Cologne.
The Romanians needed just five shots on target to register their three goals with talisman Nicolae Stanciu scoring first with a curling howitzer from distance just before the half-hour mark. The 31-year-old had more attempts (three) than any of his teammates against Ukraine and Stanciu is likely to carry the most attacking threat gain against Belgium.
The Tricolorii have now lost just once in 16 assignments since November 2022, conceding one or fewer goals in 14 of those games while keeping ten clean sheets along the way.
* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
Written by an Andy verified content writer
18+ please gamble responsibly.
