Romania – Belarus : Preview & Prediction
After a 2-0 win over Andorra in their first Euro 2023 qualifier, Romania are once again heavy favorites to reach the tournament for the second time in the last three cycles. Still, with their last best record in the first two rounds of a Euro qualifier occurring in the fall of 1998 (for Euro 2000), complacency is not an option.
Romania is expected to start well en route to a win, especially when considering their home results (G2, P1) in the last UEFA Nations League (UNL) campaign. Remarkably, all three matches saw the winner of the occasion lead 1-0 at halftime, while Romania also won the first half in a majority (three) of their last five home wins in Euro qualifiers.
Belarus could argue that starting Group I against the top seed at an empty Stadio Karadorde in Serbia serves to mitigate what happened in their 5-0 collapse against Switzerland on Saturday. But Bucharest’s 55,000-capacity Arena Naţională will offer no respite either, especially with September 2010 being the last time Belarus recorded an official win against a country currently ranked in the top 50 of the FIFA rankings.
For that reason, it already seems that Belarus’ first appearance at a EURO in the post-Soviet era will be a miracle. That sentiment only forces when looking at Belarus’ recorded away results in the 2022/23 edition of the UNL (E1, P2), which were mostly achieved by conceding goals after the 60th minute on a consistent basis.
Players to watch: Dennis Man scored Romania’s first goal in Andorra on Saturday, and did the same in his country’s last home win last September, with both goals being registered in the period between the 31st and 45th minute. Because of that, Belarus goalkeeper Andrey Kudravets will do his best to stop him, especially after conceding a hat-trick in the first half-hour of play in his team’s debut in these playoffs.
Big Fact: All three of Romania’s previous home games against Belarus have seen the two teams combine for more than 3.5 total goals (G2, E1).
Romania – Belarus : Betting Tips
Romania – Win Odds: 1.35
