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Steffen Schmidt - September 7, 2023
Romania vs Israel
EURO Qualifications
Date: 9 September 2023, Saturday
Kick-off at 19:45 UK / 20:45 CET
Venue: Arena Nationala (Bucharest).
A real buzz is expected in and around Arena Nationala in Bucharest on Saturday evening when Romania and Israel take on each other in a huge Matchday No 5 tie.
With just one point separating the two teams in second and third place of Group I standings, the outcome of this match might have major implications to the two outfits’ destinies in terms of the qualification for the 2024 EURO.
Romania have not had a major slip-up yet. They started the campaign with wins over Andorra and Belarus before playing back-to-back draws to Kosovo and Switzerland.
A point from Switzerland was massive for Eduard Iordanescu’s troops and it could well prove out to be the difference-maker in the grand scheme of things.
The Romanians managed to get it thanks to a super-late brace form substitute Valentin Mihaila (Parma’s midfielder) three months ago.
Israel, on the other side, took just one point from the opening two matches against Kosovo (a 1-1 draw) and Switzerland (a 3-0 defeat) but rebounded by beating both Belarus and Andorra in the following two affairs.
Israel do have issues on both ends of the pitch, especially when they come across stronger opponents.
That being said, this is the clash between two similarly-matched teams. Considering the stakes on the line, we don’t expect a big amount of chances on either end.
We will see a huge tension on the pitch and you can expect a lot of fouls and cards. In these circumstances, the Under 2.5 goals FT is the best betting option and you can go for it at the 1.72 odds.
As for the outcome, the value is with Israel not to lose at the 1.80 odds knowing there is really not much to separate the two teams in terms of quality at the moment.
