Ukraine - Belgium predictions and free betting tips [26/06/2024]

On Wednesday, 26 June, as part of the third round of the group stage of Euro 2024, Ukraine will face Belgium. Last weekend, both teams secured crucial victories on their second attempt: Serhiy Rebrov's squad defeated Slovakia 2:1, while the "Red Devils" overcame Romania 2:0.

Predicted Line-ups

Ukraine: Trubin; Tymchyk, Zabarnyi, Matvienko, Mykolenko; Sudakov, Zinchenko, Shaparenko; Yarmolenko, Dovbyk, Mudryk.

Belgium: Casteels; Castagne, Faes, Vertonghen, Theate; Tielemans, Onana; Doku, De Bruyne, Trossard; Lukaku. 

Stadium

The match will take place in Stuttgart at the MHPArena.

Ukraine

Ukraine had a decent qualifying campaign, finishing 3rd in their group, falling short to England but gaining as many points as Italy. Advancing to the playoffs, Serhiy Rebrov's team defeated Bosnia in the first round (1:2) and Iceland in the final with the same score (2:1). Despite the high expectations placed on the national team before the start of the Euros, in the first round of the group stage, Ukraine was thoroughly beaten by Romania (3:0). However, last weekend, Ukraine redeemed themselves against Slovakia. Trailing at half-time, "Zbirna" equalised thanks to a goal by Mykola Shaparenko, and Roman Yaremchuk secured the three precious points with a refined touch on the 80th minute.

The standings before the third round in Group E are intricate: with a win, the nominal hosts will secure a spot in the top two and a playoff berth; otherwise, for third place – and a potential 1/8 final entry – a draw would suffice if Romania beats Slovakia, and even a loss may not be fatal if Slovakia also fails. During preparation for the continental championship, the Ukrainians looked less than promising, losing to Poland (3:1) and drawing with Germany (0:0).

Belgium

Belgium also disappointed in their first round, losing to Slovakia (0:1), despite two goals disallowed by VAR, and, most notably, Lukaku's colossal misses. The "Red Devils" had no choice but to win last Saturday against Romania, and they accomplished this task. Domenico Tedesco's side opened the scoring almost immediately with Tielemans' powerful shot (at the 73rd second – the fastest goal ever scored by the Belgian men's national team at major tournaments) and secured a comfortable victory (2:0), drawing level on points with other group teams.  

Belgium will clinch first place with a win if Slovakia draws or loses to Romania, but failure combined with Romania getting at least one point will doom the "Red Devils" to another disheartening exit. It is also worth noting that until the first-round loss, the Belgians had an impressive unbeaten streak of 16 matches across all competitions, securing 10 wins, including two friendly matches against Montenegro (2:0) and Luxembourg (3:0) in June.

Head-to-head

These teams have never met in history.

Prediction for the match Ukraine – Belgium

Against Romania, the Belgians looked much more confident than in their opening match and now aim to confirm their ambitions in the final group stage encounter. The Ukrainian national team hasn't impressed so far, scraping three points against Slovakia without looking any better. I don't see how the yellow and blue can succeed in Stuttgart, hence my bet on a victory for Domenico Tedesco's men.

Prediction on total goals

Three goals by Romelu Lukaku were disallowed by VAR in this tournament – I simply don't believe the forward's misfortunes will continue endlessly. I risk betting on his goal this Wednesday.