EURO 2024: The Ultra previews Wednesday’s 5pm games between UKRAINE v BELGIUM and SLOVAKIA v ROMANIA both with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
UKRAINE V BELGIUM
5pm The Euro 2024 Group stage comes to an end on Wednesday on BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE! We have Group E and F down for decision, and we have four very interesting markets to go through. We kick off the action in Group E as Ukraine meet Belgium. Heading into the final game this has been by far the most open Group; it actually couldn’t be more open! All four sides have three points, so everything is on the line. Group A finished on Sunday night, and Hungary finished with three points but had a negative goal difference of -3. All four sides have a better goal difference than that here, so third place for this Group are nailed to go through. Not many football fans would have expected Belgium to be in this position; on paper you would have expected Belgium to sail through the Group stage and then possibly fluff their lines in the knockouts as we have seen too many times before. They blew countless chances in their 1-0 loss against Slovakia in their opening games, mainly due to Lukaku to be honest. This is another game that they should win on paper, but you always have the question of will they take their chances at the back of your head. As always, it comes down to the odds.
Belgium come into the game as the odds on favourites at 1.73 with Ukraine 5.3 and the draw is 4.2 at the time of writing. Ukraine have done very well to bounce back to give themselves a chance heading into this final game. They were totally outplayed by Romania when losing their opening fixture 3-0, and then they were 1-0 down at half-time against Slovakia too. You have to give them massive credit for finding a way to win there, but you also have to say that they have played pretty average football. I know Belgium lost to Slovakia in their opening game, but they finished with an xG created of over 2.0 and then they bossed the Romania game again finishing with an xG created of over 2.0 but this time actually taking their chances. At the start of the Group the general feeling was this was going to decide top spot, and although Belgium have had their troubles I feel there’s been a huge gulf in class between the sides performance wise. For me there’s only one winner here, and I feel we’re getting so much value at 1.73 that Belgium are worth a Five Star NAP!
The Ultra Says:
Five points win Belgium to beat Ukraine at 1.73 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/UkrBel
SLOVAKIA V ROMANIA
5pm Next we have Slovakia taking on Romania, and these two sides must be absolutely buzzing to go into the final game in the position they are in. These two would have been the outsiders heading into the Group stage to go through; obviously the best third-placed spots has opened things up a little but as I said above – the general feeling here was Belgium first, Ukraine second and then maybe one of these sides could pick up that third-placed spot if possible. Now they head into the final fixture with a good chance that both of them head through. Slovakia produced one of the shocks of the tournament when beating Belgium 1-0 very early in the tournament; Belgium finished the game with an xG created of over 2.0 so Slovakia were very lucky to win but you have to give them massive credit for holding on after taking an early lead. They probably have Lukaku to thank more than anyone else! They played OK against Ukraine in their second game too; they would have been disappointed not to get a draw given they were 1-0 up at half-time. Romania topped their qualifying Group so plenty of football fans were expecting good things from them.
They started with a bang beating Ukraine 3-0 in a very impressive display. They then lost 2-0 to Belgium, but I don’t see any shame in that – there’s a big gulf in class between the sides there. Romania have the upper hand on goal difference as they top the Group heading into the final round of fixtures, but they can handle business themselves here and not have to worry about goal difference. We have one of those classic “a draw will suit both sides here” markets! At the time of writing, the draw is the favourite at 2.14 with Slovakia 3.4 and Romania are 4.1. It’s not often we see markets like this, but we tend to get it at major tournaments – we’ve had a lot of Serie A markets like this in the past where a draw suits both sides and they play out a cagey game. It’s always interesting because of the debate it sparks – it’s never “agreed” to be a draw and in general I always feel both sides will try their best. At the same time, I’m keeping stakes small here. I do feel that the 4.1 on Romania offers a lot of value here – they have been the better side and I would have them shorter than Slovakia.
The Ultra Says:
One point win Romania to beat Slovakia at 4.1 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/SloRom
