Table of Contents
Analysis of Group E of the 2024 European Cup:
Group ranking prediction:
- Belgium
- Ukraine
- Slovakia
- Romania
Overview analysis of each group in the 2024 European Cup. This article is about Group E. Belgium got a relatively good draw in this group. Slovakia was eliminated from the group in the last competition, Romania was eliminated in the qualifying round, and only Ukraine squeezed out. Entering the knockout round of the conference, they were defeated by England 0-4 in the quarterfinals.
Belgium is ranked 3rd in the world in this group, Ukraine is 22nd, Romania is 46th, and finally Slovakia is 48th. Just looking at the world rankings, it seems difficult for Belgium to be eliminated in the group stage like the Qatar World Cup, but it will be The goal is to win first place in the group.
Belgian
Belgium’s golden generation is almost over. De Bruyne, Witsel, Carrasco and others are getting older, Hazard has retired, and Mertens has Mertens and Alderweireld are not on the list, and goalkeeper Courtois refused to be called up due to conflicts with the head coach. Even though Belgium is in a relatively easy group in this tournament, it can Still not expected to make it to the end.
However, compared to being eliminated in the group stage of the last World Cup, a group of middle- and new-generation players at that time improved a lot in the past season. Trossard scored goals at Arsenal this season. Doku is also Manchester City’s hot spot on the wing, and with De Ketelaere showing signs of recovery after moving to Atlanta, Belgium’s middle and new generation players are slowly being replaced by someone.
Ukraine
Ukraine was unlucky to be in the same group as England and Italy in the qualifying rounds. However, although they were at a disadvantage in the matches against the two teams, they managed to maintain at least 1 point at home. They met Italy at home in the final round. , but unfortunately a fall to the ground in the penalty area was not considered a penalty kick by the referee, and the third place in the group fell into the play-offs.
In the two games of the play-offs, Ukraine showed the team’s tenacity. In the games against Bosnia and Iceland, they defeated their opponents at the end. The two comeback wins also proved their strength. Come to the European Cup, this In addition to Belgium, the opponents in the group are stronger than the teams in the play-offs, Romania and Slovakia, and their defenses are relatively solid. If Ukraine loses the ball first in the game, it will be more difficult to come back.
Slovakia
Which ranks last in the world in the group. Compared to Romania, although Slovakia’s world ranking is lower, at least there are some well-known stars in the team, such as those who were at Inter Milan and joined last season. Paris Saint-Germain’s Škriniar, Napoli’s midfielder and backfield playmaker Lobotka, and veteran Kucka who has played at AC Milan for two seasons.
In the qualifying round, they were in a group that was not actually very weak. In addition to the superior Portugal, Iceland, Bosnia and Luxembourg were all teams at the same level as Slovakia. In addition to losing 1 goal each against Portugal, Slovakia’s record of 7 wins and 1 draw in the other 8 games is quite good, and it only conceded 4 goals in 8 games, so its defense is quite solid.
Slovakia has better experience than Romania, but lacks offensive firepower in the frontcourt and may encounter some problems in tough battles.
Romania
Romania, ranked 46th in the world, was an Eastern European team that was still competitive around 2000. It has not had any outstanding results in recent years. However, in the European Cup qualifying rounds, they were undefeated in 10 games, with 6 wins and 4 draws. They were ranked first in the group and advanced. Although it can be said that they were lucky enough to be in a group without any traditional football powers, the fact that they were able to win 1 home and draw 1 against Switzerland also shows that they have certain strength.
When looking at the roster of this team, it is indeed difficult to find any highlights. Only 5 players play for the five major European league teams. The most famous one is probably the one who joined Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for 30 million euros during this winter transfer window. Defender Drăgușin and goalkeeper Moldovan also went to Atletico Madrid in the winter transfer window as Oblak’s substitute. Their star ratings are so low that it is no wonder that they were rated as the lowest possible team to win the championship. One of the teams.
Conclusion:
After the European Cup expanded to 24 teams, there is indeed a situation where there is a relatively large gap in strength in the group stage. The same is true for this group. Belgium is the only strong one, but Ukraine may be able to pose a slight threat. Ukraine’s paper strength is complete, but can it break through Romania? The defense line with Slovakia is still unknown. Mudrik and Zygankov on both sides will be too obsessed with completing the offense after getting the ball, but miss the best opportunity to cooperate with teammates. If they cannot get it from Romania and Slovakia 3 points will affect the chances of promotion.
