Group E Euro 2024: Schedule, Predictions and Preview
Group E might look like one of the most unpredictable groups at the Euros. It is clear that Belgium are the favourites, but apart from them Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine all contest for the second and the possible third spot to qualify further. The Red Devils are a football powerhouse, and they have shown that during the qualifiers. But they are attempting to replace their ageing golden generation with new squad members.
It will be interesting to see if they are going to be as dominant against these teams as they were in the qualifiers. Romania, on the other hand, has been a surprise entry in the Euros, and the same can be said for Slovakia. Ukraine boasts a strong team that could surprise everyone. They showed how resilient they can be after emerging from the added qualifiers.
Group E Schedule and Favourite
Group E Euro 2024 clear favourite is Belgium. Even though they are the strongest team here, they tend to underperform in big tournaments. Competing for the rest of the qualifying spots are all three teams. Slovakia might be the weakest, with Ukraine and Romania set to battle it out for the runner-up position.
| Date | Matchup | Match Start |
| 17 June 2024 | Romania vs Ukraine | 15:00 |
| 17 June 2024 | Belgium vs Slovakia | 18:00 |
| 21 June 2024 | Slovakia vs Ukraine | 15:00 |
| 22 June 2024 | Belgium vs Romania | 21:00 |
| 26 June 2024 | Slovakia vs Romania | 18:00 |
| 26 June 2024 | Ukraine vs Belgium | 18:00 |
Group E Teams and Analysis
Group E Euro 2024 is a mystery. Literally, anything can happen. Belgium is the favourite but they too are not a hundred per cent certain to go through. Their first match of the competition is against Slovakia, sounds like an easy game on paper. But a slip-up there might deter them for the rest of the tournament.
Belgium
Belgium went through the qualifiers without losing a game. They topped Group F and had only two draws. What is more impressive, they allowed only four goals and were one of the better defensive teams in the entire qualifying round. Yet, they finished with only a single point above Austria, showing that they added a lot of young players to their squad to replace the ageing Golden Generation.
As always, Romelu Lukaku was a standout, scoring 14 goals. Coach Domenico Tedesco will be relying on the most since the very start of the Euros. He will get the most support from Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard and Leipzig’s Loïs Openda. However, the mastermind of the entire team is their captain, Kevin De Bruyne, who can turn the tide of the game with just a single move.
Slovakia
Slovakia had a very interesting qualification cycle as they finished second in Group J/ They had most of the work done for them as Iceland Bosnia and Hercegovina were not playing to their level. More so, Luxembourg of all teams emerged as a potential candidate to advance.
Sokoli made the most of the situation and used it to qualify for their third European Championship in a row. Last time, they finished the tournament in the group stage and now they are hopeful to go a step beyond. Milan Skriniar captains the team. But he hasn’t had an impressive season at PSG this term after switching from Inter Milan.
Romania
Romania both impressed and surprised everyone by topping Group I in front of Switzerland. They won six and drew four games, going through the qualifiers without a loss. They even defeated the Swiss at home in Bucharest by 1:0 to seal the top spot in the group.
Tricolorii will be making their 6th appearance at the Euros. They missed the previous competition and have gotten out of the group stage only once. It was during Euro 2000 when they reached the quarter-finals of the competition. While they don’t have star players in their ranks, they play very good team football. Standout names are Sprus’s Radu Dragusin and Alaves’s Ianis Hagi.
Ukraine
Ukraine had a very tough task by facing England and Italy in Group C of the Euro qualifiers. But they put up a great fight, tied on points with Italy, but still finishing third. This meant that they had to go through the play-offs tournament. They defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina by 2:1 in the semis, and then Iceland, also by 2:1, in the final, with Mykhailo Mudryk scoring the winning goal.
Mudryk will be the man everyone is going to be watching at the Euros. The Chelsea winger showed signs of greatness this season but is still a diamond in the rough. The Euros are a perfect stage for him to shine. He will be joined by fellow team members Artem Dovbyk, Andriy Yarmolenko, and captain Oleksandr Zinchenko as they attempt to make it out of the group stage only for the second time in their history.
Group E Predictions and Odds
It is our impression that Group E is the hardest one to predict at this year’s Euros. Belgium does emerge as the favourite, but only by a slim margin. On the other hand, the rest of the three teams have practically equal chances to go through. Check our experts’ Euro 2024 Group E Preview and Predictions for better insights.
Our Group E predictions also see there not being too many high-scoring games in this group. Over 2.5 is possible when Belgium plays Slovakia perhaps, but the rest of them might finish in Under 2.5 easily. The final game, Ukraine vs Belgium, might be the decider, with an advantage to Ukraine in a certain scenario.
