Belarus - Romania predictions and free betting tips [12/10/2023]

On Thursday, 12th October, amid the Euro-2024 7th-round qualifying stage, the Belarus national team welcomes the Romanian national team to their home ground. The nominal hosts have already lost their chances to make the top two, while Romania lies in second place in Group I, with 12 points collected.

Projected Line-Ups

Belarus: Plotnikov; Karpovich, Politevich, Polyakov, Volkov, Pechenin; Korzun, Kaplenko, Bocherov; Kontsevoy; Morozov.

Romania: Moldovan; Ratiu, Dragusin, Burca, Bancu; Stanciu, Screciu, Cicaldau; Hagi, Alibec, Coman.

Belarus

Belarus, unfortunately for the fans, is out of the running to make it to the next Euro, having only achieved 1 victory, 1 draw, and suffering 4 defeats in Group I. The hosts are currently only outperforming modest Andorra, so 4th or 5th place is a fair result for this team. Last round-up in late September, the home team fell short in Andorra (0:0 draw) and then lost at home to Israel (1:0). Overall, three of the four defeats - against Romania and twice against Israel - were with a difference of one goal, but they also have a victory over Kosovo with a 2:1 scoreline to their credit. The team's coach, Carlos Alos, is hoping that success in the upcoming encounter will at least somewhat stir his charges' pride, as making up the 8-point deficit from the second position seems impossible.

The Belarusian roster relies mostly on players who perform domestically. Among them are Minsk's central midfielders Sergey Politevich (1 goal) and Polyakov (1 goal). The offensive threat comes from the naturalised Max Ebong (Astana, 4 goals), and we also have Vitaliy Lisakovich (Rubin Kazan, 5 goals) who is well known to the Russian fans. Much will depend on whether coach Alos wants to stick with the usual 5-4-1 line-up. In this case, the most likely starters will be Ivan Bakhar and Pavel Savitskiy. Mozorov of Dynamo Minsk has scored 2 goals in the last 6 matches and is ready to strengthen the game by coming off the bench.

Romania

Romania is in splendid shape for qualification, but the journey is still far from over. The visitors currently sit 2nd in Group D, with 12 points to their name. Considering Switzerland is among their competitors, the Romanians' performance looks strong – 3 victories and 3 draws in six starting rounds. In their last two home matches at the Arena Nationala, Romania shared points with Israel (1:1) and then defeated Kosovo (2:0). Having only competed in three major tournaments since the start of the millennium (Euro-2008 and Euro-2016), the visitors exited without a single victory, so reaching the final stages of the upcoming continental championship in Germany is just a small part of the Romanian team's ambitious plans.

In November, Iordanescu's charges will face Israel and Switzerland, so they need to gather maximum points in clashes with Belarus and Andorra. The Romanians can count on a far higher quality lineup, which boasts performers well known to the European audience. Genoa's Radu Draguşin is the main defender, partnered with Andrei Burca (21 years old, Al-Ohod), who plays in Saudi Arabia. The team captain is Stanciu (62 matches - 13 goals), who also performs in the Saudi league. Ahead, Puşcaş (Genoa, 38 matches, 10 goals) and Denis Alibec will start, while Valentin Mihaila, who replaced in the match against Kosovo, will be vying for a place on the left flank.

Head-to-Head 

The first round head-to-head encounter in Yerevan ended in a 2:1 victory for the Romanians.

Prediction

Romania, which is yet to lose in the current qualifying campaign, is quite a formidable national team. Given the fight for the top two and the schedule, the visitors can't afford to falter on Thursday. Belarus, facing struggles to pick up points, can't even count on home crowd support, as the match will take place in Budapest on neutral ground. My prediction – a victory for Romania.