Ukraine vs Belgium predictions: Red Devils can bedazzle in final group game
- Belgium recovered from opening defeat to beat Romania
- Ukraine also bounced back with win against Slovakia
- Recommended bet: Belgium to win half-time/full-time
Group E remains wide open with all four teams having a single win and three points apiece ahead of the final round of games on Wednesday.
Last time, Ukraine produced a 2-1 comeback victory against Slovakia, while Belgium made several changes after losing their first match and defeated Romania 2-0.
Team news
Domenico Tedesco brought Jan Vertonghen, Athur Theate, Youri Tielemans and Dodi Lukebakio into his starting lineup against Romania.
Lukebakio is suspended for this match, so Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard could return to the team.
Sergei Rebrov must decide whether to start with Artim Dovbyk or Roman Yaremchuk up front, with the latter having scored the winning goal against Slovakia.
The stats
Belgium’s 2-0 win over Romania saw them record their sixth clean sheet from their last eight games.
Ukraine have lost each of their last three final group stage games at major tournaments.
After scoring in his last match, Kevin De Bruyne has 31 goal involvements from his last 32 international appearances.
Prediction
After suffering a shock defeat to Slovakia in their opening game, Belgium were under pressure when they faced Romania.
They were not fazed, with the changes made by Tedesco creating a better balance in the team, particularly in defence, where Theate’s inclusion gave Timothy Castagne licence to get forward on the right.
Another of Tedesco’s new starters got Belgium off to a flyer when Tielemans gave the Red Devils the lead after just two minutes of the match.
As was the case against Slovakia, the Belgians were guilty of profligacy and it took until the 80th minute for De Bruyne to make sure of a victory that should have been secured much earlier.
Romelu Lukaku once again failed to score, after he suffered his third disallowed goal of the tournament, but the striker looked a menacing presence and he will surely find the net before long.
Ukraine looked to be on the verge of exiting the tournament when 1-0 down against Slovakia and showed real fighting spirit to recover.
Yet though Mykola Shaparenko and Yaremchuk’s goals secured victory, the overall performance was worrying, with the goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin making a string of saves.
Slovakia had 56 per-cent of the possession and managed to fire 14 shots at goal, which are ominous statistics when they are about to face a team as talented as Belgium.
Even accounting for the fact that Tedesco’s team have been wasteful in this tournament, Ukraine look too open to live with them and the Belgians seem set to build momentum with a second successive victory.
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