Belgium - Slovakia predictions and free betting tips [17/06/2024]

Today, at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt, the national teams of Belgium and Slovakia will face off in Group E of the European Championship. The match is scheduled to start at 16:00 GMT.

Team Line-ups

Belgium (4-3-3): Koen Casteels; Jan Vertonghen, Wout Faes, Timothy Castagne, Thomas Meunier; Youri Tielemans, Amadou Onana, Kevin De Bruyne; Jeremy Doku, Leandro Trossard, Romelu Lukaku.

Slovakia (4-3-3): Martin Dubravka; Milan Skriniar, Denis Vavro, Peter Pekarik, David Hancko; Juraj Kucka, Stanislav Lobotka, Ondrej Duda; Tomas Suslov, Lukas Haraslin, Robert Bozenik.

Belgium National Team

Belgium is participating in their seventh European Championship but has yet to win the title. However, historically in the Euros, the Belgian team reached the final in 1980, winning silver, and in 1972 they won bronze. Romelu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois hold the record for the most matches played for Belgium at the Euros, each having played 10 games. Lukaku is also the top scorer for Belgium in the European Championships with 6 goals.  In the qualification tournament for the current Euro under Domenico Tedesco, the Belgian team took first place in their group, edging out Austria by just one point. In 8 matches, the "Red Devils" won 6, drew twice, and boasted an impressive goal difference of 22:4. Lukaku retained his status as the top scorer with 14 goals. Ahead of this Euro, Tedesco's team also performed well in several friendlies, showing a high level of play. For example, they defeated Luxembourg 3:0 and Montenegro 2:0, while drawing with England 2:2 and Ireland 0:0.

Slovakia National Team

As an independent country, Slovakia has participated in the final stages of the European Championship twice — in 2016 and 2021. At Euro 2016, the team reached the Round of 16, advancing from a group that included England, Russia, and Wales. However, five years later at the postponed Euro 2020, the Slovaks did not manage to progress past the group stage.  In the last qualifiers for the current Euro under coach Francesco Calzona, Slovakia secured second place in their group, trailing behind Portugal by 8 points. In 10 matches, the team won 7, drew once, and suffered 2 defeats with an overall score of 17:8. Lukas Haraslin became Slovakia's top scorer in the group stage with 4 goals. Ahead of the current tournament, Slovakia also played a series of successful friendlies, including confident victories over Wales and San Marino with a score of 4:0, a 1:1 draw with Norway, and a 0:2 defeat to Austria.

Head-to-head Meetings

In the history of head-to-head matches between Belgium and Slovakia, there have been 3 games. In their last meeting on 6 February 2013, Belgium won 2:1. This was their only victory in the history of their encounters. Prior to that, in 2006 and 2002, both teams ended their matches in a 1:1 draw.

Match Prediction: Belgium vs Slovakia

I would bet on Belgium to win by 1-2 goals, something like 2:0 or 1:0. The Slovaks are not on the same level as the new generation of Belgian stars. Belgium has one of the best defences in the qualifiers, making it extremely difficult for Slovakia to score, given their weak attacking names.

Total Prediction

The trend of this Euro with many goals in this match, in my opinion, will not continue. Belgium will have a lot of possession and play reliably in defence. I would opt to bet on the total under 1 goal in the first half. The fresh Slovaks will still be able to press and try to prevent Lukaku and De Bruyne from finding their rhythm.