The 2024 European Championships have begun and Romania will battle Ukraine in the first tilt of the group stage. We’re here to share our 2024 Euros odds series, make a Romania-Ukraine prediction, and pick while showing you how to watch.
Romania is in the group stage for the first time since 2000. Ultimately, they did not lose a single qualifying match. Their exceptional defense has been firing on all cylinders, with just five goals allowed over 10 matches. Amazingly, their .5 goals per game is only behind Portugal and France. It will be their 17th game in the Euros. However, they have only one win over their previous 16 matches in the Euros, which was a 3-2 win over England in 2000.
Ukraine is in its fourth straight European championship. Recently, they made the quarterfinals in 2020 but fell to England. The Ukrainians qualified for the 2024 Euro through the playoffs. Somehow, they got here despite being in a group qualification that also included England and Italy. Ukraine rallied to win both matches they played to qualify. Unfortunately, they had an issue falling behind. Ukraine trailed in 6 of 10 matches. Thus, they cannot allow this to happen again.
Ukraine and Romania have played each other three times in their history. Overall, Ukraine has won two matches and the teams have played to one draw. But Romania has not won a match yet, making this a long shot.
Here are the 2024 Euros odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
2024 Euros Odds: Romania-Ukraine Odds
Romania: +300
Ukraine: -105
Draw: +240
Over 2.5 goals: +124
Under 2.5 goals: -150
How to Watch Romania vs. Ukraine
Time: 9:00 AM ET/6:00 AM PT
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Why Romania Will Win
Head coach Edvard Iordanescu will have his hands full, but he has been at the helm since 2022. Now, he hopes he can guide this team to a shocking win.
Goalie Horatiu Moldovan is likely the goalkeeper for this one as they face Ukraine. Additionally, Florin Nita is the other option if this does not work out. One of them will need to play at a high level.
But the defense will need to continue to strive to be the best. Significantly, Radu Dragusin is a solid defender and one of the best in this tournament. He allowed 19 goals while producing three clean sheets in nine matches throughout Series A during the 2023-2024 season. Substantially, he had clean sheets over 16 percent of the matches he has played. Andrei Burca is also on defense and will play alongside Dragusin.
Romania needs to score, so they need their midfielders to start things off. Nicolae Stanciu has produced 14 international goals. Furthermore, he will have help from Ianis Hagi, Darius Ilaru, and Florimel Coman. Marius Marinard and Razvan Marin are both known for their two-way abilities.
George Puscas is the only elite threat on offense for Romania. Amazingly, he has produced 11 goals for the Romanians and will be a threat to break out on the pitch.
Romania will win this match if it can use its defense to stonewall Ukraine and prevent it from breaking through. Then, it needs its midfielders to set up the offense and score some goals.
Why Ukraine Will Win
Sergiy Rebrov leads the Ukrainians to another Euro Cup opportunity. Now, he hopes his squad is ready to step up to the challenge and make good things happen in this tournament.
Real Madrid’s Andriy Lunin will likely be the starter and comes in with 49 saves and 17 goals allowed with 10 clean sheets over 21 starts for the team. Likewise, Anatoliy Trubin from Bernefica is the other option and comes in with 73 saves, 22 goals allowed, and 13 clean sheets over 28 starts.
But the goalkeepers will need some defense. Ultimately, it starts with Vitaliy Mykolenko from Everton. He was one of the best defenders on the Toffees, with 19 clean sheets and 100 goals allowed over 75 English Premiere League tilts. Moreover, he has a 57 percent tackle success rate with 15 blocked shots. Mykolenko also has 98 interceptions and won 288 duels while losing just 248. Meanwhile, Mykola Matviyenko is another option on defense while Shakhtar Donetsk will also be solid.
When they need to produce offense, the midfielders will come into play. Thus, the first name that comes to mind is Okelsandr Zinchenko from Arsenal. Zinchenko has produced two goals and 11 assists over 130 games in the Premier League. Likewise, Ruslan Malinovsky from Genoa is going to be a force. Overall, he produced one goal and four assists in 28 games during the 2023/2024 season. Mykhailo Mudryk from Chelsea can also contribute. Recently, he is coming off a season where he had five goals and two assists over 31 Premiere League matches. Mudryk also produced two goals and two assists in nine qualifying matches.
Artem Dovbyk leads the forwards. Ultimately, he had two goals over 10 qualifying matches. Dovbyk also generated 24 goals and eight assists over 36 matches for Genoa.
Ukraine will win this match if its defense can intercept passes and swing the momentum forward. Then, its midfielders will need to generate opportunities.
Final Romania-Ukraine Prediction & Pick
Romania is relatively new to this. Conversely, Ukraine has done the dance before. We could see a scenario where the teams play to a draw. But in order for that to happen, Romania will need to play nearly perfect defense. Remember, they have won one match over 17 Euro contests. Expect this to be the same, with Ukraine barely prevailing.
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Final Romania-Ukraine Prediction & Pick: Ukraine (-105)