Sports Mole previews Monday’s European Championship clash between Belgium and Slovakia, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Belgium and Slovakia will get their respective Euro 2024 Group E campaigns underway on Monday evening with an intriguing match-up at the Frankfurt Arena.
Romania and Ukraine are also present on what looks to be a very open section, and both Belgium and Slovakia will be determined to get their campaigns off to winning starts on Monday.
Match preview
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Belgium are not considered to be among the favourites to triumph at Euro 2024, with not too many tipping the Red Devils for success this summer, but they are certainly capable of being dark horses.
Domenico Tedesco‘s side will enter the European Championship off the back of friendly wins over Montenegro and Luxembourg, scoring five times in the process and conceding zero, while they are unbeaten in all competitions since a 2-0 reverse to Morocco at the 2022 World Cup.
Indeed, De Rode Duivels failed to make it out of the group stage of the World Cup, finishing third in their section behind Morocco and Croatia, while they were eliminated in the quarter-finals of Euro 2020.
Belgium’s best performance at a European Championship came in 1980, when they were runners-up, suffering a 2-1 defeat to West Germany in the final of the competition.
Tedesco’s team are the favourites to finish at the top of Group E, and they will face Romania in their second match in the section on June 22 before finishing against Ukraine four days later.
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Slovakia will certainly have their eyes on second in Group E, while a strong third-placed finish could also see them advance to the knockout round of Euro 2024.
The Falcons have not been present in the finals of a World Cup since 2010, when they reached the round of 16, but they competed at Euro 2020, being eliminated in the group stage.
Slovakia’s last-16 spot at Euro 2016 represents their best performance in the competition, and they will enter their Euro 2024 opener off the back of two impressive friendly wins, beating both San Marino and Wales 4-0.
Francesco Calzona‘s side have only lost one of their last seven matches in all competitions, while they finished second in their European Championship qualification section behind Portugal, claiming 22 points from 10 games.
Slovakia will be going in search of their first-ever win over Belgium on Monday, with the Red Devils winning one of their previous three matches – the other two being drawn – with the success coming when the two teams last locked horns in an international friendly in February 2013.
Belgium form (all competitions):
Slovakia form (all competitions):
Team News
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Belgium are expected to be without the services of Jan Vertonghen and Arthur Theate for their section opener due to injury, while fellow defender Thomas Meunier is also a doubt.
The Red Devils are likely to line up in a 3-4-2-1 formation on Monday, with the country’s all-time leading goalscorer Romelu Lukaku leading the line.
Manchester City duo Jeremy Doku and Kevin De Bruyne will also be in the side, while the absences at the back could mean that there is a start for Maxim De Cuyper.
Axel Witsel is set to operate in the middle of the defence, while Everton’s Amadou Onana should be joined by Orel Mangala in the middle of midfield for Belgium’s opening game of the competition.
As for Slovakia, Denis Vavro is nursing a slight thigh problem, but the defender is expected to be given the nod to start for his side on Monday evening.
Juraj Kucka should also be fit despite some recent injury issues, while there will be a spot in the final third of the field for Robert Bozenik, who has seven goals for his national team.
The Slovakia squad is headlined by Paris Saint-Germain defender Milan Skriniar, who is in line to win his 69th cap in this contest, while the leading goalscorer in the squad is Ondrej Duda, and the 13-goal midfielder is another certain starter for the Falcons in this contest.
Belgium possible starting lineup:
Casteels; Faes, Witsel, De Cuyper; Castagne, Mangala, Onana, Doku; Trossard, Lukaku; De Bruyne
Slovakia possible starting lineup:
Dubravka; Pekarik, Vavro, Skriniar, Hancko; Kucka, Lobotka, Duda; Schranz, Bozenik, Haraslin
We say: Belgium 2-1 Slovakia
Slovakia are certainly capable of making this a tough match for Belgium, and it would not be a surprise to see the points shared on Monday. However, we believe that Belgium’s superior attacking quality will allow them to open their tournament with a narrow success.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.